Project 404
by sova
Summary: The 100 were not the only group sent from the Arc to Earth. After having the initial 100 touchdown, the Arc sent 20 more condemned citizens down. However, when their pod gets knocked off course they end up landing in a grounder village. This is their story of survival, and how one girl will either have to learn adapt to this new unforgiving world or die. GrounderxOC
1. Project 404 - The beginning

**Condemned to be floated for their crimes, the Arc singled out 20 of the most brilliant adults and sent them down to Earth after the original 100. However, their ship gets knocked off course and they end up landing in the middle of a hostile grounder camp. This story will eventually run back into the original 100 group. This is a GrounderxOC story.**

I do not own anything you recognize from the 100 series. The main character, her group and a few of the grounders are all I lay claim to.

**Please review, tell me what you think or what could be done better. Without further ado, please enjoy the story.**

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><p>"Chancellor, we believe the first 100 have touched down to Earth. Life support signs are showing stable," an engineer called out from a control panel. "Should we begin the launch sequence for Program 404?"<p>

Thelonious Jaha gripped his wound as he moved over to a window facing Earth within his quarters.

"We've already risked so much," he sighed. "If this is to work, then we need to give them the best chance possible. Launch Program 404."

"Yes sir, initiating launch sequence now."

Jaha just nodded silently in response as he continued to stare at the distant green and blue planet.

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><p>I groaned as the bright lights overhead shone into my eyes. Slowly reopening them I tried to take in my surroundings. There were no windows but the roar of engines coming from behind me told me that whatever craft I was in we were moving, and fast. Looking around I noticed a handful of other people strapped into chairs in rows around to me. Glancing down, I was buckled in the same type of safety harness they were.<p>

"What is going on," I mumbled, mostly to myself. The last thing I remembered was sitting in a jail cell waiting for the guards to take me to be floated.

"I think we are about to find out," a voice next to me responded. He was in his late 30s with short blonde hair and a stern face. He was obviously from the Arc, but I didn't recognize him.

"Greetings," a voice called from the communications screen two rows ahead of me. "By this time most of you should be waking up from the sedatives the guards administered."

On the screen was Chancellor Jaha, and by the strings of curses and confused gasps I heard, I was guessing the others I was with liked him about as much as I did right now. Which wasn't very much at all after my arrest.

"At this moment the ship you are in is bound for Earth, you are the second group we are sending to the planet," he continued. "You were each sentenced to be floated for your crimes in accordance with Arc law, however, you have been carefully selected for this mission and if you succeed, you will be pardoned in full for your crimes."

"What bullshit," the man to my left muttered. I couldn't help but to agree, being floated was a quick death. Being sent to a toxic planet was cruel.

"We have already sent a group of 100 prisoners to the ground before you, and have reason to believe that Earth is survivable," Jaha said. "Find the 100, make your way to Mount Weather where you will find supplies and shelter and help rebuild a home for our people - your people. This is your task, each of you are the best in your field, use your skills to help the 100 establish a base at the Mount, and if you survive we will follow. Our people can finally return to Earth, to our home."

With that, the transmission cut out. Seconds later the ship started rattling violently, causing me to grip my harness a little tighter.

"What's happening?" I heard someone from in front of me yell.

"Turbulence, we must be entering the Earth's atmosphere," the man next to me supplied.

"What happens after we breach?" I asked back as I turned towards him, hands still clutching the harness.

"We parachute and we land, or we crash and die," he said. "One of the two."

"Great," I muttered.

Minutes later the shaking stopped, and our ship was lurched back suddenly. I was hoping that was the parachute deploying, but with the harness digging into my ribs from the jump I couldn't find the breath to ask. I could hear our ship making contact with the world outside as things scratched the sides of our ship and jostled us around.

I was thrown forward suddenly, my harness catching me harshly before I went to far. I noticed that we had stopped moving. We had landed! I was alive and we had successfully landed. My excitement quickly quelled though as I realized what came next. Earth.

"Could have been worse," the man next to me said as he unbuckled himself and stood up. Following suit, I noticed he was quite a bit taller than my 5 foot 5 inch stature.

"You okay kid," he asked, glancing over at me for only a second.

I nearly scoffed at the remark. At 22 I was hardly considered a kid anymore by our society's standards, but looking around I noticed that I was easily one of the youngest amongst our group.

"Yeah, I'll make it," I responded. He just huffed in response, like he wasn't so sure. But I guess none of us were sure how long we were going to survive this little expedition.

"Listen up, we've landed," stated Captain Obvious from the front of the pod. "We need to get a census of who is all here and decided what our next step is. Once we open these doors we have to start figuring out where we are, how to find the others, and where this Mount Weather is."

"We're just going to to along with whatever Jaha requests of us?" yelled someone from the right.

"We are until we can come up with a better plan," the man from the front responded. As I shifted out of my row I was able to get a better look at him. He was tall, bald and bulky, and looked very comfortable at being in charge.

"My name is Parker Rain, I am a former high ranking guard, I'm guessing I'm here for security and to lead this team," he continued. He looked expectantly to the smaller man to his right.

"Well?" Rain questioned. "Speciality? Name? Anything?"

"Farmer," was the man's only meak response.

We continued around the group. There were a few people I recognized from being from my station, but I knew none of them well, except for one man from medical to my right.

When it got to me, I stopped for a second. I had been trying to keep track of all the others in my head that I hadn't stopped to think about why I would be included. I had always made high marks in school, but was never top of my class. Until a few weeks ago I had been apprenticing under Dr. Abby Griffin - that must be it.

"Medical." I sounded out in turn. I was an apprentice, and one of only two medical personnel sent down to the ground. What was the Arc thinking? Then again, I guess a lot of medical staff doesn't go getting themselves floated for felonies… But Jaha has said that we were the best in our field, I guess that might have been a bit of an exaggeration.

All in all, it seemed that we had a farmer, biologist, botanist, an engineer - who happened to be the blonde man still standing next to me - two cooks, a linguist, carpenter, two earth skills cadets, a teacher, welder, weapons mech, a historian, two medics, and some ex-guards.

The oldest of us was the historian, who was in his late 50s while the youngest was either myself or one of the guards, it was hard to tell.

What a rag tag group we are, I thought to myself. How the hell are we going to survive this?


	2. They didn't come in peace

After our introduction period it was decided we should search around the pod before heading out into the vast unknown. Or the vast whatever it was out there. Already a handful of weapons had been found - a few guns, and a few more shock whips.

I winced as the engineer next to me switched one on. The low buzzing noise was an unpleasant reminder of home to say the least. He quickly switched it off though and moved on to the rest of the items in the chests that had been stowed away with us. Aside from weapons, a few medical kits had been found and pushed my way with some doubtful stares. A map, some backpacks and a few canteens had also been dug out. They certainly didn't leave us much.

I carefully packed what supplies that had been handed to me in the black backpack I had picked up. I had a canteen, a box of salty crackers, three med kits which all had various tools, vials and bandages in them and a pocket knife. I packed everything away before moving my hand to my belt, thinking that I should probably keep my knife somewhere handy in case I needed it quickly.

Of all days I didn't put on a belt, it was the one day I would actually need it. I groaned. I had on I had on tight white jeans, a black tank top and a black loose fitting shirt that fell off my shoulders over it. I didn't have a jacket and my black boots were snug enough that I wouldn't have any extra wiggle room to shove the knife in. Groaning again I attached it to the back of my jeans so that it was pressed against my back.

I'm probably going to stab myself if I fall, all because Jaha couldn't allow pants with pockets in the skybox, I thought to myself.

"Alright, we're going to open the doors. We will have guards go out in front and signal if it is clear," Rain called from the near the pods door. He, the guards and the two guys with supposed Earth Skills were the only ones given real weapons, and they raised them carefully as the airlock on the door released.

I gasped as the door touched the ground. This was it, this was Earth - and damn was it gorgeous. As the guards carefully made their way down the ramp everyone moved closer the doors. My eyes scanned the tree tops, everything was so green! I had read about trees in my studies back on the Arc, but none of the pictures or descriptions would ever come close to how they looked in person.

My fascination was short lived though, as a spear quickly impaled one of the guards standing to the right of Rain. A woman, one of the teachers, to my left screamed.

To the left of our ship wooden buildings were on fire, there were people running from structure to structure trying to gather what they could. But in front of us, slowly emerging from the trees were monsters.

Their bodies were smeared with black where their armor did not cover. Masks of leather, fur and what looked like bone covered each of their faces. They were terrifying, and the assortment of spears and swords they carried did nothing to make them appear more friendly.

We weren't alone on the planet I realized. Others had survived on Earth after we had left. These people, if that's what they were, had managed to survive a nuclear wasteland for 97 years and in just a matter of minutes we had already pissed them off. Great.

One of the men from the trees yelled something in a strange language. Rain lowered his weapon just slightly as he turned to call back to one of the older men in our group who had identified himself as a linguist earlier.

"Something you recognize Doc?" Rain asked.

The man shook his head and stepped forward slowly to move to the front of the group. The same man from the trees yelled something again, louder this time as he raised his spear.

"I think that means stop," the engineer who had been seated next to me earlier called out.

"You understand them?" Rain called back.

"No," the engineer huffed. "It's just damn common sense."

I wanted to laugh, but the fear from my imminent death kept me from finding the humor in the sarcastic exchange. The guard who was hit with the spear groaned loudly in pain though, and I was quickly snapped back to the present. He was bleeding out and unless we were able to close the wound quickly, he would die.

With a deep breath in, I made the most non threatening gesture I could - holding my empty hands out in front of me - I slowly moved towards the front of the ramp.

The man from the trees stiffened as I walked forward, but I kept my eyes on him only occasionally glancing down at the wounded guard, hoping he would get the message.

"What are you doing kid," Rain asked, sparing only a fleeting glance back at me as he kept his gun raised.

I was really going to have to do something about this "kid" nickname stuff, I thought to myself. Mental note for later: if I survive, get new nickname - something badass.

I didn't say anything back to Rain, my focus still on the man with the deadly looking spear in the front. As I neared the wounded man, who had been thrown back a few feet from the impact, I slowly dropped to my knees and turned my full attention to the dying guard at my side.

The man from the trees gave another cry and the group surrounding us moved closer. Well, shit I thought. Rain had the same thought, though his came out loud.

"We don't want to hurt you, we come in peace," yelled the translator who was still frozen in place from earlier. The warriors from the trees kept moving forward.

"Put your weapons down idiots," the engineer yelled. "Of course they want to kill you with your guns pointed at them like that."

Rain hesitated, but gave the command. It seems if we were going to die, it was going to be without a fight. Which was actually okay with me, because I was in no way cut out for fighting giant skeleton masked nuclear tree warriors.

The warriors quickly, and harshly, disarmed the guards standing at the front of the lift. Knocking them to the ground with the blunt side of their weapons. Behind me I could hear someone from our group crying.

I took a deep breath and focused back to my task at hand, trying to calm my nerves from the approaching warriors. I had to figure out how to get the spear out and stop the bleeding, we couldn't lose someone from our group yet. We hadn't even been on Earth for an hour yet, it was to early for us to already start dying.

I touched the handle of the spear, but the guard groaned in protest. It had to come out, and it was not going to be pretty. I froze though when a pair of black fingerless gloves came into view, gripping the spear handle just a few inches higher than my hands. I took a sharp breath in and looked up slowly.

It was a woman, with skin as dark as the black leather that covered her body. Her hair was cut short, but her sharp cheekbones and full lips easily distinguished her.

"Healer?" She asked in English. Her voice was raspy but clear.

I started to nod my head, but then froze. She has just spoken English. Maybe she could understand us!

"I am," a voice called from the group behind me. The woman snapped her head up at the sound. A man from our group stepped forward. His name is Lucas, I vaguely recalled. He was one of the only people in our group that I had recognized, he was a medical apprentice like I was.

"I am a doctor," he said again. Looking down at me briefly, he looked scared and I couldn't blame him. The woman next to me grunted as she stood to her full height. I saw her reach her hand back and then my world went black as I collapsed on the metal pod door.

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><p><strong>Author note here: This is my first story I have actually published to this site, so any comments, criticism or feedback would be actually really helpful. This story is just me running off an idea I had while binge watching the 100. Eventually the two story lines will run into each other, but not before some more interaction with the grounders. It is a little slow moving at first, but I promise it will pick up.<strong>


	3. Float Me

My head is pounding. I groaned, and started to wonder what would have made my head hurt so badly. Breathing in slowly, I realized the ground beneath me was cold, wait, that isn't right. My bed is supposed to be warm. I opened my eyes slowly, trying to ignore my growing headache. Looking around everything started to come back to me.

I wasn't at home, still on the Arc locked in the skybox resting in bed. No, I was somewhere far worse. I was on the ground. I put my hands flat on the stone floor and pushed myself into a sitting position. Glancing around, the room we were in now was small, but gave our group enough space to sit comfortably. Though, by the look of everyone's faces, no one was really comfortable here.

"Where are we?" I wondered quietly to myself.

"Earth, or did they hit you hard enough to make you forget that already that kid?" a voice grumbled from my right. It was the engineer again.

"My name's not kid," I muttered back, it was the only cohesive response I could come up with. "It's Cole."

"Whatever, how's the head kid?" he shot back.

I groaned as I gently touched the back of my head where the pain was centralizing from. No blood came back on my hand, and besides a small knot everything felt fine.

"Could be worse," I responded. "Where'd they take us too?"

He shrugged before responding, "Some type of underground bunker, though some of the guards and the medic boy from earlier aren't with us anymore."

Lucas, my mind registered. That's right, they had called for a healer and he stepped up.

"What do you think they needed them for? Do you think they're alright?"

Again he just shrugged, "How would I know?"

How helpful and reassuring I thought. I was about to tell him just that when the sound of a lock turning caught my ears. The quiet mumbling of others talking quickly died down as everyone's attention turned to the door.

It was the woman from earlier, who had grabbed the spear, flanked by two warriors still sporting their masks and weapons. The woman scanned the group, her eyes stopping on me. I gulped. She pointed at me and said something quietly to one of the guards next to her, causing him to move in my direction. Those who were sitting in front of me quickly scattered and moved out his path, the thought irritated me for a moment before I realized there was nothing they could do to help me anyways. We had no weapons, none of us sitting in this room were fighters. We were outmatched and at their mercy.

He stopped a foot short of my spot on the floor and glared down at me. He barked an order at me, but it wasn't in English so I couldn't understand. Angry that I didn't respond he said his command again, this time taking a step forward. I looked up at him, shaking my head slightly.

"I don't understand what you're saying."

Growling he bent down to grab my shoulder roughly. His gloves had nails coming up from where his knuckles would be and as he jerked me to my feet one of them ran across my cheek. I hissed in pain as I struggled to stand for the first time since waking up and grab my now bleeding face. What an ass.

"Cole?" asked the warrior woman, who was still standing by the door expectantly. My name sounded almost foreign when she said it, but still I glanced up, still holding my cheek and nodded. How did she know my name? Most of my own group didn't know my name yet.

"Good, come," she said as she turned out the door. The man nearest me pushed me in front of him. They were real stingy with their use of English I thought, could have just asked nicely the first time. Though as I studied the ensemble of the guard in front of me with his belt made of bones and jacket covered in spikes, I realized doing things nicely probably wasn't high on their to do list.

I was lead outside, and followed closely as we weaved our way through trees. They moved quickly and quietly, obviously comfortable out in the forest, but the setting sun and muddy ground made it harder for me to keep up. Anytime I began to lag, or they thought I wasn't moving fast enough the man behind me was quick to give me a strong shove forward.

How nice of him, I thought sarcastically as I struggled to regain my footing. Because the pushing and shoving makes it so much easier to keep up.

It wasn't long until we reached a group of buildings, with a fire roaring in the center. I was led into one of the buildings and again pushed through a doorway before we came to a stop. Makeshift cots lined the walls, some holding bodies, others empty and ready for use.

"Cole, thank God," sighed Lucas, who I had just noticed was crouched near one of the cots. He kept glancing back and forth between our captors and myself nervously. "I, uh, need your expertise." he said.

"This is your healer, yes?" The woman from before asked suddenly. Lucas nodded in response.

"Let's hope she's better at it than you."

Turning to me she looked at me critically.

"These are our injured. They are hurt because of you," she explained coldy. "Our healer is amongst the injured, you will heal them or you and your people will die."

With no other explanation she left, the two men who had lead me here trailing after her. I turned slowly back to Lucas who, if possible, looked even more scared than before.

"Are you okay?" he asked. I just nodded in response, my pounding headache and scratched cheek no longer at the top of my priorities. Looking around the room there were roughly 12 people laid out on the cots, each in various degrees of alertness and pain.

"What's wrong with them?" I asked, causing Lucas to sigh.

"It seems that when we landed, we landed right in the middle of one of their villages," he explained. "Some of them have shrapnel from the ship breaking down embedded in their skin, others have third degree burns - all of them are in pretty rough shape. I have been able to treat some of them more minor injuries with what supplies they gave me, but Cole, its primitive. Vials of herbs and ground up juices - most of which I can't even recognize."

He paused and motioned to the table in the center of the room. I moved closer to see what he was talking about. Scattered across the table were leather pouches of corked glass vials each with different plants and liquids in them. The knives were handmade and some even looked rusted from use, I grimaced at the thought.

"These three are the worst," he explained, motioning to the three cots closest to where he was standing. "This one, from what I can tell, was their healer before, and these two are important to them, but I'm not sure how."

I nodded in response, and moved closer to Lucas.

"This one," Lucas continued, pointing to the man he identified as the healer before. "Has third degree burns across his body, but I can't find any ointment to treat him. The other two have shrapnel buried deep in their bodies and I'm not sure how to go about getting it out without any anesthetic or sterile tools."

This isn't good, I thought to myself. Without the proper medicines and tools, it was a very real possibility that they would die. And if they die, then we all die. I gulped at the thought.

"Cole, I know this is overwhelming, but can you say something," Lucas asked, practically begging me.

"Sorry," I said. "This is all kind of overwhelming"

"Tell me about it," he said. "So do you have any ideas? Any possibly life saving ideas?"

I just looked up at him and shook my head.

"Without sterile equipment and medicine, I'm not sure what we can do for them," I admitted. "Without a burn ointment his wounds will get infected, and we can't even start to operate on the other two without actual medical tools. None of this stuff they left will work."

He nodded in agreement, "I know, but we have to figure out something Cole. You heard them, they'll kill us if we can't save them. I am at a loss about what to do to, I was hoping that you could help come up with something, seeing as this is kind of your field."

"What?" I balked. "Shrapnel, third degree burns and archaic medicinal practices are definitely not my area of study."

"That's not what I meant," he explained quickly. "It's just that back on the Arc I only handled generic medical problems, like kids getting the flu or cleaning up small bumps and scrapes. You, well, you and Dr. Griffin handled more severe trauma cases - I know for a fact she let you complete one of the surgeries for the guard even though you're still just an apprentice."

"Doing a surgery with an AI to walk you through step by step is different from, well, this," I huffed back. He did have a point though, between the two of us I was trained better to handle traumatic wounds, but even with training we still lacked supplies.

If only we had a medical kit - wait! That's it. The med kits from the ship. They wouldn't be the same as having a fully stocked operating room, but it would be a start.

"Do you still have your backpack," I asked Lucas, excitement in my voice leaking through. He looked at me slightly confused.

"No, they took it from me," he responded slowly, not seeing where I was going with this yet.

"Well we need to get them back," I said. "I had three med kits in mine, I didn't get a chance to go through them, but I'm betting there is at least a sterilizing kit and a scalpel in there!"

He nodded, "Yeah, that would help. But how do you suppose we get them, just walk out into the camp full of warriors who are just waiting to kill us and ask nicely?

I thought about it for a second before tilting my head to the side and smiling, "Yeah, why not."

Lucas just stared at me like I had suggested we take a recreational space walk.

Turning and heading towards the door, I turned before disappearing and called back, "What are they going to do? Float me?"


	4. Steady as She Goes

**I won't make this a habit, but a quick thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this so far. Don't forget to review and tell me what you like, don't like, want clarified, ect. **

**This chapter will be a little longer as I start to introduce some of our main grounder characters in more detail, and it is my goal that from here on out most of the chapters will be as long, if not longer. - SOVA**

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><p>Maybe being floated would have been safer, I thought as one of the warriors from before took a swing at me as I walked out of the building. I moved out of the way quickly, not wanting to be on the receiving end of his spiked gloves again. Throwing my hands up I tried to plead with him.<p>

"Wait, I'm not trying to escape," I said, ready to dodge if he didn't believe me. While fighting wasn't on my list of mastered skills, dodging guard attacks back home was something I had gotten decent at. "I need my backpack."

The warrior grunted and moved closer. Either he didn't understand me, or he didn't care.

"Please," I said. "If you want your people in there to live you have to listen to me for a moment."

"You are in no position to give orders to us girl," the woman from before commented. Moving from the shadows of the tree closer to the light given out by the fire in the center of the circle of buildings.

I shook my head, "No, I know. And it's not an order, I'm asking you."

Pointing back to the room I had just exited, "I can't help them with the supplies you gave us, but in the packs we had there are medicine kits that I can use to help them. If you can get those to me, I think I can save them."

"What makes you think we would do anything for you?" the warrior closest to me asked.

So now he speaks English, that's convenient I thought.

"I'm not asking you to do it for me, I'm asking you to do it for your people in there that are dying," I replied. I was mildly impressed with myself for a moment, that actually sounded convincing. Apparently the woman thought so to because she ordered the two men to gather all the packs they had taken from us and have them brought back to me.

I almost thanked her, but I knew she wasn't doing it for me. I still had no guarantee that once we healed her people that she wouldn't have us all killed, but one problem at a time.

"Remember what I told you," she whispered quietly, her voice dripping with venom.

"Yeah, yeah, heal them or we all die. Got it," I replied.

Seeing the warriors make their way back with their hands full of our various packs I returned back to the building and Lucas.

"You're still alive," he half joked from next to one of the cots. He was washing blood from around the burns of one the more badly wounded men.

"Yeah, and I come baring gifts," I joked back as the warriors moved past me to place the bags on top of the tables.

"Holy shit, you got them!" Lucas exclaimed, standing up to move towards the table. "Asking nicely worked?"

I bit back a laugh and shrugged my shoulders, feeling it best to not go into detail.

"Let's see what we have, shall we," I said as I unzipped one of the packs. It took a few tries to find the ones with medical kits inside, but eventually Lucas and I had everything laid out neatly on the table. We had found a few bottles of disinfectant, a tub of burn cream, healing salves, a case of gauze and bandages and a travel size kit of medical tools. The supplies wouldn't last long, but they would serve our purpose. With some luck, we might have some of the other random supplies from the kits left over in case of an emergency - I laughed at the thought. Because being threatened to perform miracles or die wasn't a big enough emergency.

"I'll start with the healer and treat his burns if you'll prep the other two," I supplied. Lucas nodded and asked what I wanted him to do.

"Clean around the wounds, make a count of exactly where the shrapnel are embedded and how many there are overall," I told him, adding a few additional instructions. "I want to get his burns treated first, we may have already waited to long to clean them out. But after I get him wrapped up, I'll come and help you."

Gathering the supplies I needed I moved closer to the man with the bad burns. He had already been mostly stripped, leaving him in a pair of shorts on the cot. Before now I hadn't really taken the chance to study our captors, but as I prepared the ointments I looked over my patient.

Like many of the others he had tattoos scrawled across his face, his created a circle vortex almost around the right side of his face disappearing into his hairline and beard. He had long, braided dark hair and an equally dark and coarse beard to match. Like the others I had seen, his skin was a dark tan - exposure from the sun I guessed.

Carefully I wetted a rag I had found in some of the disinfectant and began to clean off the dirt and grime covering his burns on his arms and upper chest. The clothes he was wearing must have provided some protection I assumed. At some of the more damaged spots he twitched when I touched him, but he never woke up. I quickly applied the burn cream we had found in the packs and finished wrapping gauze around his wounds.

Standing up I evaluated my work. If we could break his fever, and infection hadn't already set in, he would live. Good, one down and two to go.

I moved towards Lucas who was finishing "prepping" the second man. The one Lucas wasn't next to groaned loudly and I moved towards him first.

"His temperature is higher and the shrapnel is deeper in his chest, I think we should start with him," Lucas suggested.

"Where is the other one injured?" I asked as I knelt down to the one who had moaned in pain.

"Most of the shrapnel is in his back, it's deep but his vitals are stable for now," he replied.

I looked over our next patient. Lucas was right, this man was worse off.

"We'll need more rags, some clean water and the sewing kit if you can find it again," I listed off for Lucas who had moved towards the table with the supplies on it.

The man in front of me was fading in and out of consciousness, and I willed Lucas to move faster with my mind. This man was built differently than the healer, he was as tall as the first but his body was lean and defined with muscle. A thought that both made me blush in realization and groan inwardly as I realized that would make it more difficult to pull the shards of metal out of his body. Like the others I had seen he had tattoos across his body, starting on the sides of his neck going down to a point on his shoulders. Around both biceps he had black bands that circled his muscles in different thicknesses. However, the markings that stood out the most on his body were the blood red circles that started from the center of his collar bone and spanned out in a neat line, evenly spaced out across his clavicle.

I absently reached out to trace the red tattoos, but the moment my hand touched him his body jerked. I looked up to find him staring at me, now fully awake though obviously wounded and limited.

"Can… Can you understand me," I asked, stuttering at first from the intensity of his gaze. He said nothing, but spared a glance back over my shoulder as Lucas moved behind me with the supplies I had asked him to gather.

"I think that you might be able to," I continued softly. "I am a healer, sort of.. I"

The man snorted at my comment. Well, at least I know he can understand me now.

"Listen," I continued, using a little more force in my voice than before. "I was asked to heal you, and that's what I am going to do. You have pieces of metal buried in your skin and I have to get them out so your body can heal and you don't pick up any toxins or infections from the metal. I wish you weren't going to be awake for this... I don't have any anesthetic."

Lucas pulled out a piece of leather I guess he found at the supply table and raised it to the man's mouth.

"Bite on this," he suggested. The man just grabbed the leather with his teeth and spit it out to the side.

Guess that's a no then.

"Listen man, this is going to hurt," Lucas tried to argue, but I just put my hand up.

"He knows Lucas. He doesn't want, so don't force it on him," I said as I picked up a wooden bowl that I had placed a scalpel, tweezers and the sewing kit in. The man on the cot seemed pleased with that as he stopped glaring and moved his head back to look at the ceiling above. "Besides, if the screaming gets to be too much we can always duct tape his mouth shut."

I was mostly being cheeky - we didn't even have duct tape - but the glare from the warrior told me he didn't find me to as funny as I thought. Letting a deep breath out, my face fell to a serious expression as I caught the man's eyes again.

"Once I start, I can't stop. We've already waited to long," I told him. "This will hurt, even though I will try to be as gentle as possible, but I need you to try not to move. No matter how bad it hurts. It's critical that you understand that, some of these pieces are pretty close to your heart, if you jerk up I could kill you, and I don't want to do that. Do you understand?"

For a moment I almost thought he didn't, but he eventually nodded his head once.

Well that would have to due. With another deep breath I began to cut around dead tissue and pull the pieces of shrapnel out. One by one I was able to get the pieces out, quickly disinfecting the wounds and sewing them up as neatly as I could after. To his credit, aside from the involuntary muscle spasms I was causing, the man didn't flinch or jerk away from me once. Though, his face told me that this was still no picnic for him either.

"Almost done now," I tried to reassure him. Me and Lucas had been working on him for what I guessed to be nearly an hour, if not longer. It was hard to tell time underground I noticed. The last piece was the deepest, and the closest to his heart. It was also the one I was most nervous about. I had no way of knowing if the metal was acting as a plug to a deeper wound - if it had already pierced his heart, pulling it out would mean killing him. On top of that, if I didn't pull it out at the same angle it went in, I could still puncture his lung myself.

From beside the cot the angle to pull out the shrapnel wasn't right and I huffed in frustration. Standing up I realized that the shrapnel had entered in from straight on. Biting back my blush and ignoring the confused looks from Lucas, I climbed onto the cot and straddled the man's waist causing him to groan.

"Oh hush, I'm not that heavy," I responded, suddenly self conscious of my figure. While I was by no means unhealthy, I was very aware that I was in the upward range for the normal statistics for weight for women of my height and age range. I tried to readjust my weight anyways though, resting more on my things than on the man himself.

His eyes met mine again, and I noticed they were a startling shade of grey. And for once, he wasn't glaring at me.

Focus Cole. Ignore the extremely muscled, dreamy eyed warrior your stradling. Yeah, I was bad at pep-talking myself.

"Careful now Cole," Lucas whispered from my left. I blushed at being caught in the middle of an internal debate and focused again on the task at hand.

"I need you to hold still now," I told the man beneath me, as if he wasn't already a still as a board. Carefully I grasped the edge of the shrapnel with the tweezers and began to pull it out, following the same path that it cut open to go in. I felt the man tense beneath me, but heeding my words he did not move more than that. The tweezers lost their grip and for a moment I fell backwards slightly, I hadn't realized I had been using so much effort to pull it out.

Lucas beside me took a sharp breath in and I carefully reevaluated the damage. Luckily the slip hadn't made things worse, meeting the man's eyes once more I tried once more to pull it out. Hearing it make a hollow clang into the bowl next me made me swell with pride. Watching the wound for a moment I realized that he was still breathing fine and no blood had come rushing out after - I had done it.

"Good news bud," I told the man I was still sitting on top of with a cheeky grin. "I think you're going to live."

He again said nothing, but returned to looking at the ceiling. I would take that as a sign of immense gratitude.

I moved off of him with some help from Lucas and finished stitching up the last wound.

"Why don't you get some sleep Cole, you did a good job but you must be exhausted now," Lucas said softly.

After taking a moment to think about it, I realized that I was starting to feel extremely tired. Tending to the man had been nerve wracking and had drained me more than I cared to admit, but we still had one more to go. Sensing my thoughts, Lucas quickly assured me he could take care of the last one, that none of his wounds were as severe.

I was unsure, "You've been up as long as I have Lucas, if not longer. It's not fair for me to sleep while you work. Let me help you."

"Cole," Lucas replied. "I can tell just by looking at you that you're exhausted. That procedure was way harder for you than it was for me. I can handle the last guy, and I promise that if I run into any difficulties at all I'll wake you up first thing."

I was going to argue, but caught myself yawning instead. I grudgingly agreed, sitting down on the cot next to the man we had just patched up. Pulling the blanket back I laid my head on my arm as a makeshift pillow, glancing over at the man on the bed next to me. Drifting into sleep, I noticed he had turned his head my way. Saying nothing I just nodded my head towards him slightly, and to my surprise before sleep took me I thought I saw him nod his head back.


	5. Cheers to Us

"Cole," a voice called out from a distance

"Cole!" it was louder now, why did that voice sound so familiar?

"Cole! Now would be a great time for you to wake up," the voice cried again loudly, as if they were standing right beside to me.

Groaning groggily I slowly opened my eyes to see Lucas crouching next to the cot I had claimed as my bed. Well, that would explain it.

"Cole, I'm sorry to wake you up, but uhm, something's not right," he said.

Still half asleep it took me a moment to catch up. How long had I been asleep? I wonder if Lucas finished with the third patient …. crap. I finally registered that Lucas had mentioned there was a problem, problems in the medical field were never a good thing. Sitting up and rubbing the sleep from my eyes, I looked over the cots.

"What's wrong Lucas?" I asked as I stood up, leaning from side to side to stretch the muscles in my back that ached from the stiffness of the cot. Not that I would complain, sleep was sleep.

Noticing that Lucas hadn't responded yet I made my way over to the third patient I had left to him who was resting soundly on his stomach. He looked to be the youngest of the three critically wounded, but I would have guessed him to be around my age. I quickly ran through a mental checklist as I scanned his body: bandages seemed clean and tight, there was no blood seepage, his breathing was steady and as I reached down to place my hand on his back his temperature was warm but not alarmingly high. There didn't seem to be a problem, confused I looked back towards Lucas and shot him a questioning glance.

"It's not him Cole," he answered. "It's this one."

Following his gaze I took a sharp breath in, it was the man I had worked on earlier before napping. Making my way towards his cot I chastised myself for not noticing it immediately when I had woken up. His body was coated with sweat that shone in the dim light the room offered. Crouching next to him I placed my hand carefully on his forehead. Hot, way to hot.

"When did this start?" I asked Lucas who was still standing on the other side of the cot.

"Maybe 20 minutes ago, it's hard to tell time in here," he answered hesitantly. "At first he was just groaning and I thought maybe he was just starting to feel the pain from the stitches, but it got worse."

I ran through each step I had done in my head, mentally looking for anywhere I could have messed up. Checking his body I huffed in frustration, all of the wounds looked fine. There was no puss or fluid, no raised edges or abnormal swelling that would indicate an infection - it didn't make sense.

"When did he stop groaning?" I asked Lucas.

"I woke you up as soon as I noticed it."

Well, that was as good of any news I was going to get. That would give me some time to figure out what was happening, though by his shallow breathing I knew it wouldn't be much.

"His blood." a voice groaned.

Turning quickly I looked towards the direction the voice had come from to see the man with the burns struggling to sit up. Did he just? He shouldn't even be awake yet. He shouldn't be moving yet!

Lucas regained his composure quicker than I did and rushed over to him, "You shouldn't try getting up just yet. Your wounds are too fresh, you need to rest if they are going to heal properly."

The man grunted in reply but did not move to lay back down. I wonder if all of these people down here are this stubborn?

"He's right you know," I called out as I walked towards the supply table to grab a canteen from one of the packs we took from the drop ship.

"Here," I offered as I moved closer to him, he moved to grab the canteen but I pulled it back slightly out of reach, causing him to glare. Aside from stubbornness, glaring also seemed to be one of their stronger traits. "Lay back down, I didn't spend all that time treating and wrapping your wounds just so you go and re-injure them."

Sighing he layed back down, and I allowed him to grab the canteen from my hands.

"Do you know what might be wrong with him? They said you are one of their healers," I asked softly, waiting until after he taken a few gulps of the water.

"His blood is bad," he answered shortly.

That didn't make sense.

"Do you mean septic?" I asked, but the blank stare I got back made me think that wasn't a term they used on the ground. I tried again.

"His blood is poisoned from the wound?"

The man nodded his head.

"No," I responded quickly. "I cleaned out every open cut, and cut away dead tissue before sewing them shut. The wounds are healing fine, if he was septic they would infected."

The man on the cot grunted.

It had to be something else. I racked my brain for all possible scenarios that would cause the symptoms that were presenting. Blood toxicity was the most likely, but I was sure I had sterilized everything, it just couldn't be. So if it wasn't something that was caused by me, and I was running on that assumption because I was certain I hadn't missed anything, then whatever was happening now existed before we had started to help him.

"Do you still have the shrapnel pieces we pulled from him," I asked Lucas quickly. He looked confused but nodded anyways and moved towards the table. I followed closely behind him.

"What are you thinking?" he asked as me he moved the wooden bowl from earlier over. "You don't think its…"

"No," I interrupted. "If he was septic there would be other symptoms, and that would mean that we had done something wrong. I've run through the procedure at least a dozen times in my head, and I can't find a single thing that we would have missed. So, if we didn't infect his blood, something else must have."

He nodded his head as I talked, trying to follow my train of thought.

"You're wrong, he'll die because of you," the man from the cot croaked.

No. I can't be wrong. The consequences are too high for me to be wrong right now.

"Hush healer," I snapped back. Startling Lucas who hadn't heard me speak in such a vicious tone.

There has to be something I'm missing. I picked up each of the pieces of shrapnel, examining them carefully looking for any indication of rust. Nothing. As I moved to put the largest piece back in the bowl the smell of something faintly sweet caught my nose. Curious.

I held the shard up and took a deeper breath in, it was faint but it was there. I grinned slightly before thrusting the piece out in front of Lucas' face. My sudden movement made him lean back slightly and I just ignored his confused expression.

"Smell it." I told him.

"Is this a joke? We don't really have time for this Cole," Lucas replied unsure. I just shook my head.

"Not a joke, really just do it." He moved his head in closer keeping his eyes trained on me.

"What do you smell?

"Uhm, blood," he answered. I groaned.

"Well obviously, but what else."

"Charred human flesh?"

Okay, note to self: never play guessing games with Lucas in the future, he's awful at them.

"Doesn't charred human flesh smell a bit sweet to you," I prodded.

Taking another whiff his eyes widened slightly in recognition. Finally.

"Kind of reminds you of engine coolant doesn't it?" He just nodded in response.

"These shards must have been from one of the fuel tanks," he guessed. "But Cole, even knowing what it is, how do we treat it?"

What a debbie downer I thought, though subconsciously recognizing he had a point. I doubt these people just had the antidote for anti-freeze poisoning just laying around.

"Alright, the toxin in engine coolant is ethylene glycol right?"

"Yeah, that sounds right," Lucas responded sheepishly. "But Chemistry was never my strongest field."

Me either I thought. But let's go with it, 10 years of chemistry class had to be lurking somewhere in my head.

"So if we don't have an antidote we need something that will counteract the poison instead. And the chemical compound that would neutralize glycol would be ... it would have to be ethanol right?"

Putting the pieces together in my head I realized there might still be a way to save the wounded, now dying, warrior.

He nodded again slowly, "but where are we going to find large quantities of ethanol gas?"

How innocent.

"Gas ins't the only form ethanol comes in," I said thinking back to a memory from a couple years ago. While the substance was considered a prohibited item back on the Arc, it was easy enough to find if you knew the right people and had the right things to trade for it.

I smirked turning my back to Lucas.

"Hey healer! Where do you keep the booze in this place?"

The healers eyes widened before resting in a harsh glare that I was starting to expect.

"That was a serious question, your friend over there is going to need to get wasted if you want him to live through the night."

He was silent for a moment, still studying me. I waited for him to respond, hoping his desire for one of his friends to survive would trump his distrust of me.

"Ask Indra for _mushad_, it's our strongest drink," he replied weakly, the weariness in his voice evident.

"Who's Indra?" Lucas asked from next to me. I just shrugged.

"Guess I'll go find out."

I was slower to exit the building this time, and prepared to duck if needed again. Instead of attacking the warrior just turned to face me, looking no friendlier than last time though.

"I need Indra."

"Why," he replied, clearly content to be as unhelpful as possible.

"Because." I could be as equally stubborn I thought, my pride swelling before I instantly felt bad. I didn't have time to waste if I was going to save the man's life.

"Why," he repeated. I sighed and decided to be the bigger man, figuratively.

"Because your healer told me to."

"Niko is awake?" the dark skinned woman from earlier asked, again appearing seemingly out of the shadows.

"If by Michael you mean your healer than yes, and I need to find Indra," I responded.

"Ni-ko', not Michale," she hissed back, correcting my pronunciation. "And I am Indra."

Well that makes things a bit simpler.

"I need some mooshat," I told her. Her nose twitched as I asked, but even I was aware enough to know that I had butchered the name of their drink.

"Why?"

"To finish healing one of your people," I explained, growing tired of the game of 20 questions we were playing. She opened her mouth to say something else, but I continued before she could.

"If I'm right then this will save his life, just trust me."

Seeing her distrust I quickly added on, "I haven't given you a reason not to yet, can't that just be good enough for right now?"

She took a moment to think it over before nodding to one of the men closest to her. He made his way off into a nearby building and quickly returned holding a large glass canister. Handing it to me I nearly dropped it, surprised by the weight of the jar. It was as large as one of the tubs Dr. Griffin used to keep her coffee grounds in, and as I unscrewed the cap I noticed it smelled just as potent. Good.

Saying nothing I made my way back inside the building. Placing it down on the table I looked over to Lucas who was placing a wet rag on the sick man's forehead, he was getting worse.

"Think that will work?" he called out. Grabbing an empty canteen I pushed the nozzle down into the jar and let it collect the liquid. Once it was full I hesitantly brought it up to my lips before taking a small sip. I coughed a bit as I swallowed, feeling it burn the whole way down my throat. Yup, definitely alcohol and definitely strong enough.

"Yeah I think so," I coughed back.

I made my way over next to Lucas, kneeling alongside the cot. Helping me, Lucas tilted the mans head forward slightly as I poured the liquid into his mouth. I covered his mouth and nose to force him to swallow it. We repeated the steps a few more times until I felt the canteen get noticeably lighter.

"Well all we can do now is wait," I said, leaning back against the cot behind me. Lucas fell into place next to me. I took a swig of what was left in the canteen before passing it to Lucas who looked at it hesitantly. I pushed it closer to him and he reluctantly accepted and took a small sip, coughing much like I had the first time.

"Cheers to us," I muttered quietly as he passed the canteen back. "Let's hope this worked."


	6. Blame it on the Alcohol

At some point we had finished off the canteen and Lucas had passed out next to me, whether from the alcohol or just plain exhaustion I wasn't sure. Not that I could blame him either way, we had only been on Earth for maybe 48 hours now and had already been captured by nuclear warriors who shouldn't be alive, and threatened more times than I cared to count on top of that. Not exactly how any of us thought this would go.

A wheezing cough pulled me from my thoughts. Looking up from my spot on the floor, I looked up at the man laying on the cot in front of me. His temperature had dropped shortly after we force fed him alcohol and his breathing was getting better by the hour, who ever said alcohol wasn't the answer?

Noticing he was still asleep though I stood up, careful not to wake up Lucas - he deserved the rest. The youngest of the three had woken up earlier but after realizing the extent of his injuries decided sleep was a better option. Which only left one other, I sighed to myself before making my way over to him.

Coughing again, I wasn't very surprised to see him trying to push himself up on the cot.

"What did I tell you about that?" I chided softly as I moved to stand at the foot of his makeshift bed. He barely glanced up at me before again focusing on sitting himself up.

"I need water," he said, his voice taking on a strange accent I hadn't noticed earlier. I moved to grab another canteen from the table for him.

"You could have just asked ya know," I replied over my shoulder as I returned one of the backpacks to the floor. He just grunted in response. I rolled my eyes but handed him the canteen. I also snagged a pillow of sorts from the empty cot next to him and put it behind him to support his back while he drank.

"That should be more comfortable, if you're going to insist on sitting up," I told him with a small smile. He leaned back but again said nothing. Taking another look at him I made a mental note that his skin looked less flushed, a good sign that the ointment was working. His tattoo on his face looked more pronounced now and I realized that the thick spiral lines were actually a dark navy color, and not black, and similar to the ones I had seen on the youngest of the three.

I wonder why theirs are blue and the other mans is red? A question for later perhaps. That one and a thousand others.

"It's Nyko right?" At the sound of his name his head snapped in my direction, his eyes narrowed. Again with the glaring. "That's what Indra called you."

His gaze didn't soften but he did nod his head in reply.

"I'm Cole." I offered back, not sure why I felt the sudden need to introduce myself. I was going to blame it on the alcohol.

"I know," he grunted in response before taking another sip from the canteen. "The boy you're with calls your name every five minutes like a lost pup."

I scrunched my nose at his answer. Lucas wasn't that bad, and I definitely wouldn't have been able to stay calm and take care of everyone without him. I glanced back at his still sleeping form before turning back to Niko.

"I'm just more experienced in trauma injuries than he is I guess," I responded almost shyly now. "Plus, your people kind of threatened to kill all of ours if we didn't heal you. So we can't exactly afford to mess up right now."

I paused for a second before remembering something, "Speaking of which.."

"Speaking of killing people?" He interrupted sharply.

"Speaking of healing people," I replied my tone hardening as well. Smart ass. "Your friend on the far cot is doing better, his fever broke a little bit ago and his breathing is getting stronger. Looks like he's going to pull through."

"What makes you think he's a friend?"

I paused at that. Were they not friends? They were in the same camp. And after his comments a few hours ago about him, I had assumed that they were at least acquainted.

"Are you not?" I asked back. Nyko just huffed before again turning back towards me.

"Not particularly."

"Why not?" I immediately countered, curious to what he would say.

"You ask too many questions kid."

I shook my head and groaned inwardly. Not him too. He must have noticed my reaction because he smirked slightly before setting down the canteen on an empty space on the cot.

I wanted to check his burns but man laying in the middle yawned as he tried to push himself up off the cot as well. They were never going to get better if they kept pulling at the wounds I thought to myself. Sighing, I turned to face him and crouched down so I would be closer to his level.

"You need to stay laying down, at least for a little while longer," I told him. He tilted his head to look at me and said something in their language. I scrunched my forehead in confusion, surely he knows that I can't understand him. I was about to tell him as much when I heard Nyko respond back to him, only catching the world "Cole" in his reply. Now I was even more confused, were they talking about me?

Seemingly content with whatever Nyko's response had been, he again moved to push himself up. I placed my hand on the top of his shoulder blade, where I was sure I wouldn't irritate any of his wounds.

"No," I said again, firmer this time. His eyes narrowed as he glared at me. His face lacked the tattoos or face paint the other two sported and he didn't look nearly as intimidating. In fact with his closely shaved hair, he almost looked like a boy being put in a time-out compared to the others. I nearly laughed at the thought.

"Nyko, tell him no. He's pulling at the wounds."

"He understands you," he grunted.

"Obviously not," I said, annoyed now as the man shrugged off my hand and rolled himself off the cot. He had rolled away from me and had attempted to catch himself before he hit the floor, apparently trying a different approach since he still lacked the strength to push himself up directly. I was unsure whether to give points for ingenuity or stupidity.

"He doesn't want to listen to you," Nyko responded, now carefully taking in what was happening.

I moved to the other side of the cot and crossed my arms over my chest expectantly.

"Yeah, well look where that got you," I told the man who was now sitting up on the floor clutching his now even more injured shoulder. He barked something out at me, I couldn't understand it of course but his tone told me it was most likely not a heartfelt apology for disobeying me. Nyko avoiding my gaze confirmed as much.

I took a deep breath and shook my head as I moved over to the grounded man who was again trying to stand up. With his uninjured arm against the cot he hissed as he accidently put pressure on his wounded leg. That's what he gets.

"Here, let me help," I told him as I went to grab his uninjured arm to put around my shoulders. He instantly pulled away from me though. Why must we do everything the most difficult way possible? I could feel my temper rising.

"Listen," I told him, grabbing his arm as firmly as I dared. "You are going to let me help you get back on the damn cot, and you are going to stay there and ask me for whatever you need until I tell you that you can do otherwise. If you don't make a full recovery, me and all of my people die and I'm not going to let that happen just because you couldn't let your stupid male ego go for a day."

I was shocked on how authoritative my voice had sounded, and I felt my anger fade as quickly as it had come one. Apparently I had surprised the man as well because he just stared at me as if I had grown a third head. Well, at least he wasn't glaring at me. Small victories.

I heard what sounded like an amused snort come from behind me. Helping the man sit on the bed I turned my head. Looks like everyone's up now, I mused. The third man was looking over at us, exhaustion and amusement clear in his features.

"You hush." I scolded. These three were going to be the death of me, quite literally.

Once I had repositioned the youngest back on his cot comfortably and made sure his shoulder hadn't opened up again I brought both of the two newly awoken men a canteen of water.

"Well now that everyone's awake" I announced, though a quick glance at Lucas' still slumbering form made me correct myself, "Well almost everyone, I need you three to stay put while I go find whoever's in charge and let them know you're up."

None of them said anything, surprise there.

"No need," a slightly accented voice called from the doorway. Turning I saw Indra standing by the arch with her hands on her hips. Looking to my three patients she called out in her language, all three immediately replied.

Well that's just rude.

"They are better?"

It took me a second to realize that her question was meant for me.

"Yeah, they still need time to fully heal but they are all going to be alright," I replied nodding my head in reassurance.

"Good, come now," she commanded as she moved to turn out the door. "Bring the other healer as well."

"Wait," I called out, my voice a mere shadow of the commanding tone I had used just minutes before. I knelt down and nudged Lucas awake before continuing. "What happens now? You said you would let us go if we helped them. What are you going to do to us and the rest of the people we came here with?"

Turning back around Indra glared at me.

"I only promised not to kill you, not that I would let you go."

I gulped. Thinking back I guess that was technically true.

"Our tribune will decide what happens to you and your people next."

"What is she talking about Cole?" Lucas asked from beside me, still sitting on the floor with a confused expression. It was times like this that it was hard to remember that he was the supposedly older and wiser of us both.

"I don't know," I whispered back honestly.

"Come now," one of the warriors who had entered with Indra commanded. His face, like the other warriors I had seen, was half covered by a mask.

As we made our way out the door I heard Nyko's voice call from behind us. I'm not sure what he said but I noticed that it made Indra stop and look back at him with a slightly surprised expression. Saying nothing she just nodded and continued out the room, and we were pushed out behind her.

* * *

><p><strong>A quick thank you to everyone who has taken to the time to read my story so far, especially to those of you who have favoritedfollowed/reviewed it. It's very touching to see other people enjoy the musings that I come up with as much as I do! **


	7. I'm in shock, look I have a blanket

"Stand there," Indra commanded as she moved to the raised stairs in front of the crowd. We must have been one of the last ones here, already it seemed as if the whole village was crowded around us. Indra stood in the front with three others; one other female and two men. Each were dressed in similar style leather armor and carrying vicious looking weapons. Each had their faces painted in black, though I mentally noted that only one of the four had a red tattoo - similar in style to the man I had just been pulled away from treating.

A grumbling to my left made me turn my gaze away from the four warriors watching over us. I watched as Rain and one other man, who I think had been a guard as well back on the Arc, was pushed in the center to join us. Rain caught his footing and took in his surroundings, looking shocked as he noticed Lucas and I there with him. He looked as if he was about to say something to us before Indra's voice from the front cut him off.

"This is your leader, yes?" she asked, looking directly at me. I blanked. I wasn't sure why she was calling on me, or even what to tell her. Did we even have a leader? Noticing my lack of response Rain spoke up.

"I am," he growled. "And I demand you release me and my people!"

I inhaled sharply and looked at Rain with wide eyes. He looked a little worse for wear, more bloody than the last time I remember seeing him, but he stood determined before them. I shook my head slightly, demanding anything from these people wasn't going to work. I wasn't even sure if there was anything that would convince them to help us, but if anything I was sure that this wasn't it. The look on the faces of the four standing on the steps confirmed that.

"We will not," the man next to Indra's right replied coldly.

I saw Rain tense up, clenching his fists. He started to respond but I beat cut him off.

"Then let us stay," I called out. My voice sounded almost weak compared to our captives. Taking in a deep breath I tried again, gathering my strength.

"If you won't let us go, then let us stay," I said sounding more resolved. The tribune, who I assumed now was the four standing before us, said nothing but I had their full attention now.

"What are you doing kid?" I heard Rain whisper harshly in my ear as he moved closer to me.

"Trying to save us…. I think," I whispered back. It was a reasonable request I thought, and if we could stop threatening to kill each other then it might actually work out.

"Why would we let you live amongst us?" the man from the tribune questioned back, the same one who had forbidden us to leave. His voice sounded almost mocking with his thick accent. That, or he was mocking us.

That's a good question I thought to myself as I tried to come up with a suitable answer.

"Because we are the best of the best of our people," said Lucas from next to me. He had been silent and still the whole time, I had actually forgotten he was there. I heard Rain groan, but Lucas just caught my eye before continuing.

"Each of us on our ship are the best at what we do. We are healers, farmers, engineers, teachers, blacksmiths, carpenters, and more. We can help you, we can help each other. Share our skills with your people in return you show us how to survive."

The tribune whispered amongst themselves for a moment, and the murmuring in the crowd around us picked up.

"If you are the best of your people," the woman from the tribune called down, "then why would you need our help?"

Again with the mocking tone. I sighed. It's evident they don't think very much of us. Lucas caught my eye again and looked at me pleadingly. Like I would know how to handle this situation any better.

"We don't." Rain called back.

No, no, no. Fighting them won't work.

"No, we do," I said quickly, not wanting them to dwell on Rain. "The majority of us are not warriors, we can not fight like you do. We have few weapons and little knowledge of this land, but our farmers can help make your harvests bigger, we have the knowledge to make your houses stronger and build better weapons. But we can't do it without your help, and you can't do it without ours."

That almost sounded convincing right? As they returned to talking amongst themselves, I found myself praying that the promise of more food and better weapons would be an enticing enough offer.

"How do we know that we can trust you?" the woman from before asked. I thought over her question before answering.

"Already we have healed three of your people: two warriors and your healer. They were dying but we healed them, where your medicine couldn't, ours could," I replied. The crowd around us got slightly louder, apparently news of their injured wasn't widespread.

"They were wounded because of you though," the man with the red tattoos growled.

Technically true, but it's not like we wanted to land in a camp of hostiles on purpose.

"That's true, but we didn't have to heal them. We could have let them die, but we didn't. We had no promise of safety yet all of your injured are now healed, can that not be the first show of goodwill?"

"Nyko, as a member of this tribune, spoke on her behalf before we left them," Indra voiced. "He has voted in their favor."

"And Jaxon?" asked the red tattooed man.

"He was just awaking when we left, he made no comment either way."

Who was Jaxon? He must be the one with the red tattoos as well, he was the last one to wake up before we left. I mentally made a note to remember his name for later, if there would be a later.

"Are the others like you, or like him?" the woman beside Indra asked, her gaze fixed on Rain.

I didn't even really know the others who I arrived with, but I could take a good guess on who they were more likely to accept in.

"Like myself," I responded. "Like I said, most of us are not fighters. We are builders and thinkers."

Rain stayed eerily quiet throughout the entire exchange.

Thinking over my answer, the woman only nodded, "Fine, than I vote in their favor as well. If Nyko trusts her, than I will as well."

"I do not. We have survived this long without them and nothing has changed, I vote to kill them," one of the men called.

"And I agree," the man with the red tattoos followed. "We can not trust them."

Two to two, I tallied. Not great odds. I guessed Lucas was feeling the same way as he fidgeted next to me.

"We have no reason to take you in. You have only fought and hurt us since you arrived from your home in the sky" Indra said. "But, you have also shown your worth. I vote in your favor, however, the moment you betray us or become a burden we will not hesitate to kill you."

I released the breath I was holding, today the odds were going to be in our favor it seemed.

"No!" Rain yelled. "We do not need you, we will not live like you savages!"

Running to the nearest person with a weapon, Rain ripped their spear from their hands.

"No, stop!" I yelled. But Lucas reacted quicker than I did. As Rain aimed his spear for Indra, who was the closest of the tribune, Lucas tackled him into the mud. The people around us were furious, their yells were deafening as they held their circle formation around us.

We were so close to making it out of here, so close.

Quickly warriors emerged from the crowd and pulled Lucas and Rain apart. Both were held in a kneeling position in the mud and I cringed as I caught the sight of blood running down Lucas' face.

"See! We offer peace and they attack!" one of the men from the tribune yelled out. "Kill them!"

"No! Please," I begged. "We are not all like him. You saw that when we healed your men, and again when Lucas tackled him so he couldn't hurt you."

My eyes caught Indra, but she did not look convinced.

"So we should look the other way?" she asked.

I shook my head.

"No. No of course not," I responded. "But you shouldn't hold us all responsible for what one man did."

"Punish him, not us," Lucas added as he spit blood out to the side.

"You would have us kill only him then?" asked the other woman from the tribune.

Kill? I didn't want them to kill anyone, not even Rain.

"We would have you punish him in whatever way you deem fit," Lucas answered, his tone hard. "Whatever way you would punish one of your own for this."

Rain was struggling against his guard and cursing. He definitely wasn't making this easier for himself. If he had just stayed put…

"Then it is agreed," said Indra as she motioned to one of the fighters standing behind Rain. Before anything else could be said the man holding Rain reached forward with his knife and slashed his throat. I bit back a yelp and I watched as Lucas turned his head away to avoid the blood that was now spurting his way. So much blood.

"Bring those two with us, and feed his body to the beetles," Indra commanded as she and the rest of the tribune turned away. The people in the crowd had quieted and already started heading away. Guess that was it.

I was in shock for the rest of the day. Even as Lucas and I sat with the tribune members in a bunker and decided how things would progress, I sat silently. Lucas handled most of the deliberations and sorted out living arrangements and job assignments. A few times I had received almost questioning stares from the others but I ignored them, all I could think of was Rain's blood.

Eventually everything had been sorted and we had been escorted back to the medical bunker. Lucas gently gripped my elbow as he guided me behind the warriors tasked with returning us. He kept whispering soft words in my ear but I couldn't make out what he was saying, I didn't even try.

Once back in our medical bunker he brought me a canteen of water and wrapped a blanket around my shoulders. I drank greedily, just now realizing how dry my throat was. Once I was finished I handed it back to Lucas who just pulled me to his chest.

"Cole it's going to be okay," he whispered. "You did good out there, you gave our people a chance. It's all going to be okay."

We didn't get Rain a chance. He was just as scared and confused as the rest of us, only he payed for it with his life. With his blood, so much blood. Looking down at Lucas' shirt it was the same blood that stained his light blue button up. I pushed away from him.

"I… I just…," my words stuttered out. Shaking my head I gave up trying to express how I felt in words and settled for telling him that I just wanted to go to bed instead. Not waiting for his response I moved past him towards the bunk I had slept on just hours earlier.

I ignored the stares from everyone in the room as I readjusted the blanket over my shoulders to cover my entire body. Laying my head down on my arm, I caught the eyes of the man - his name is Jaxon I reminded myself - in the cot next to mine. I glared at him before forcing myself to turn to face the other way - I have had enough of these people to last a lifetime.


	8. The Beginning of Something Bigger

_I woke up breathing harshly with tears running down my face. I grasped the white sheets on my bunk as I struggled to gain my composure. My dream had seemed so real, yet was so hazy at the same time. I had been when I was just a young child and was being pulled away from my mother, I remember crying out for her but all the details were foggy. I couldn't remember what she looked like, only that she had hair like mine. I choked out a sob as my test got tight. It had been years since I had dreamed of my her._

_The sound of my bedroom door buzzing open distracted me, and I calmed slightly at the sight of my father._

_"Collette, are you alright?" he asked as he moved to sit on my bed. I nodded my head but my red cheeks and puffy eyes gave me away._

_"Bad dreams again?" he asked as he pulled me closer and moved my coppery brown hair out of my face. It was such a stark contrast to my fathers dark brown hair, and one of the only traits I had inherited from my mother._

_"It was about mother," I confessed. His arms tensed around me, but he didn't pull away._

_"Do you remember much about her?" he asked almost cautionary, and seemed slightly relieved when I shook my head no._

_"It will be okay Collette, it's just us, but everything is going to be okay," he tried to reassure me. "I know things are hard, but it's going to be alright."_

_Things were hard on the Arc, especially with only one parent. Father had a high up position on the council which helped secure enough food rations for the both of us, but it also meant he spent a large amount of time away. It left a lot of the house chores to fall on my shoulders and cooking, coupon budgeting and managing a home were not things they taught in class. But somehow we managed alright._

_"Everything will work out," he repeated reassuringly in my ear. "We have each other, and that's all we'll ever need alright?"_

_I nodded before I laid back down, repeating what he had told me in my head_

_"We'll always have each other."_

* * *

><p>My eyes shot open and I was quickly reminded that life on the Arc was a quickly fading memory. I scoffed at my dream as I sat up on the cot I had claimed and stretched out my aching muscles. What a joke, after that night my father had become increasingly distant and more swept up in his work, but it wasn't until he sentenced me to be floated himself years later that the lie really hit home. We never had each other, we were both always alone. And now, stuck in a hostile village I had the same feeling resonating in my gut. I was surrounded by people, but yet still very alone.<p>

A loud snore broke me out of my thoughts … okay so maybe not so alone. The noise was coming from Lucas who had claimed a cot close to mine. He was sleeping soundly and he almost looked cute as he cuddled his face into his hands.

He deserves the rest, I thought to myself as I finally stood up. I found myself wishing I had paid better attention to all the details from the day before when we had discussed arrangements with the forest people - as they called themselves. They had a word for themselves in their own language but after several botched attempts they settled for letting us call them the forest or tree people, similar to how the referred to us as the sky people. But at some point we had discussed living arrangements and I was hoping that meant we would be able to set up a tent soon, preferably somewhere above ground. Even the Arc had more windows than this bunker did.

Pushing the thought aside I made my way to the table in the middle. I grabbed a water canteen and a granola bar of sorts and began eating quietly. It wasn't until I turned around and noticed all three of my patients staring longingly at my food that I realized that none of them had eaten in days.

Crap. I save them from life threatening wounds only to kill them from starvation.

I grabbed a few more granola bars from the table, it wouldn't be very substantial but it should help hold them over until I can find them real food.

I handed the one with the red tattoos, Jaxon I reminded myself, a bar first. He grabbed it gently from my hand but said nothing as he worked on trying to open the metallic wrapper. The youngest, whose name I still hadn't learned was more eager and practically ripped the bar from my hands.

For a moment I just stood by his cot and watched as he struggled to open the wrapper. I assumed that most of the food they ate was natural and didn't typically come pre-packaged by his struggle. I laughed slightly which caused him to stop and glare at me.

I put my hand out and nodded to the granola bar, "give it here, I'll show you how to open it."

He looked almost offended and I had to bite back another laugh.

"Come on now, just let me show you how to open it," I told him, my hand still in front of him expectantly. "It's not a big deal."

He snapped back something at me in his own language before returning to fighting with the wrapper.

"Fine don't eat then" I growled back at him. See if I care.

"Penn, just give it to her," Nyko commanded from the side.

So that was his name. I made a mental note to remember it.

Penn huffed in annoyance before thrusting the bar back at me. Finally.

"Jax couldn't figure it out either," Penn pointed out, in English, still pouting in his bed. Jaxon turned his attention back to us, glaring at Penn for being called out. But true enough, his bar remained unopened too.

"You have to open them like this," I said, demonstrating on how to pull the two foil tabs apart at the top. Watching me carefully Jaxon looked back to the wrapper still in his hands and opened it the way I had just shown them, he smirked slightly when he was able to reveal the crunchy golden bar beneath it. Happy with his progress, I handed Penn back the package I had just opened and moved to give Nyko his. All three men instantly started devouring the two bars.

Guess I should move finding food for them up higher on my priority list. But it would still have to come after checking over their wounds. With all the excitement I hadn't had a chance to change any of their bandages yet. Going over my options in my head I decided to start with Nyko's burns, he was the most amicable of the three.

As I moved back over to his cot after gathering what was left of the ointment and some fresh bandages I knelt beside him.

"I want to take a look at your injuries and change the bandages real quick," I explained, as if my supplies next to me didn't make my objective clear. He only nodded once as he brushed the crumbs from the granola bar off his bare chest. I blushed. I had conveniently forgotten to notice that all three of my patients were stripped down to bare minimum and were very much conditioned to their environment until just now.

Trying not to think about their state of dress, or rather undress, I carefully started to peel back the bandages on Nyko's arms. The burns were healing quickly thanks to the ointment I had found in one of the medical kits. Almost all of his skin had repaired itself and only faint red marks remained on his arms. Nyko pulled his arm away from me to look at it himself.

"It healed far faster than it should have. How did you do this?" he asked puzzled.

"Modern medicine?" I replied with a shrug of my shoulders. He just grunted and returned his arm to the side of the cot. I reapplied ointment to the damaged areas are rewrapped both arms and his upper chest.

"Not much longer and you should be good to go Nyko," I told him as I put his dirty bandages in a pile underneath the table. "I can't detect any nerve damage so you should have full use of your hands and arms."

When he didn't respond I turned my attention to the other two men. This time I opted for Jaxon. Save the worst for last I suppose. Maybe Lucas would be up by then and I could have him change Penn's bandages. It was kind of a cop-out but damn did Penn's attitude get on my nerves sometimes.

With another bundle of fresh bandages and a disinfectant rub in tow I made my way over to his cot.

"Are you feeling better?" I aske him, unsure if he would even respond to me. Other than a few nods and sharp comments to Penn, he had remained relatively quiet. Unsurprisingly that trend continued. I went to rest my hand on his forehead but he jerked his head away from me leaving his hair in my hands instead. His hair was long as well, but unlike Nyko's seemed to be brushed semi-regularly. It was cut in a way that a few boys on the Arc had styled theirs in rebellion, shaved completely on the sides with a strip running down the top of his head in a mohawk style, but his was longer in the back. It suited him.

"I need to see if you still have a fever," I told him, moving my hand back slightly. He slowly turned his head back to me, his grey eyes piercing mine. No one back home had eyes like his.

I moved my hand towards his forehead so I wouldn't spook him again. Warm, but not startlingly high. That was good. I smiled down at him.

"Your fever is going down, that's really good. You should be feeling better," I told him. "I just need to change your bandages and then I'll leave you alone."

I had him lay down again, trying to distract myself again from his shirtless form by going over what I needed to do in my head. It was only half working. Unwrapping his bandages only made things worse. I had dated back on the Arc but none of my boyfriends ever looked like these guys. Focus Cole!

I changed his bandages, noting that they still looked clean and were healing as expected. I was putting pressure around one the wounds on his ribs as I wrapped it when a hand gripped my shoulder from behind. Startled I pressed harder than I mean to on Jaxon's wound causing him to wince as I jumped and turned slightly. The quick movement left me sitting on the edge of Jaxon's cot pressed against him. I let out the breath I never realized I had been holding in as I realized it was just Lucas.

"Jesus Lucas, give a girl some warning next time," I told him as I calmed my racing heart. For a moment I had thought it was one of the warriors from before who were guarding us, perhaps the one with nails in his gloves again.

"Sorry Cole," Lucas apologized, rubbing his hand behind his head bashfully. "I didn't mean to scare you like that."

I was going to tell him that it was alright when I felt a hand grab my arm that was keeping me balanced on the cot. Turning, my face immediately flushed. I was still putting my weight on Jaxon's chest which I knew couldn't be comfortable for him. I quickly pulled my arm back, his hand sliding from my forearm down to my hand as I moved.

"I'm sorry," I apologized to him, but he ignored me and continued to glare over my shoulder at Lucas.

"Uh sorry," Lucas said unsure of what was happening. "How are they doing?"

"Good, good," I responded, rising to my feet. "I've checked on Nyko and Jaxon, would you mind going over Penn's wounds for me?"

Please say yes, I prayed silently.

"Uh yeah, of course," he said. "But uh, which one is Penn?"

I sighed and pointed to the youngest in the middle who was looking on unimpressed. I quickly told him the others names.

"So you're the one who spoke up for us, they told us you voted in our favor at the tribune," Lucas said as he turned to Nyko.

I had been hesitant to bring that up, unsure of his motives but apparently Lucas didn't share my concerns.

Penn looked over in surprise but I noticed that Jaxon remained interested.

"Yes," was Nyko's curt response.

"Why?" Lucas countered.

I sighed. Men and their egos, did it even matter why? Things could have gone very differently if he hadn't spoke up for us.

"I think what Lucas meant to say was thank you," I added, sparing a long glance at Lucas. Nyko just grunted but said nothing else.

"Speaking of all of us getting along," I said a bit sarcastically, Penn's snort of laughter was not lost on me. "When are we setting everyone up?"

Lucas just shrugged as he moved to unbandage Penn.

"Indra and the others said they would start relocating some of our people this morning. After you fell asleep last night she let me go to where they were holding them and explain what was happening," he explained.

"Hm, how did that go?" I asked. I wonder if they're scared. I think it would be difficult to not know what was happening, but then again, I was involved in everything that was happening and it was just as hard. I guess there wasn't going to be anything easy about this.

"Not bad overall, they had a lot of questions but I think we got everything resolved. They are going to be placed with their equivalents here," he replied.

That should work. Again I found me cursing myself for not paying better attention yesterday.

"There were," his voice got quieter, as he paused. "A few questions about Rain."

The flashbacks of his blood flowing freely from his body came back to me, but I quickly shook my head to clear my mind. I couldn't keep dwelling on that.

"It's hard to believe we've already lost someone," I said absent mindedly.

"Three," was Lucas' only response as he looked up at me sadly.

Three? It took me a moment to piece together what he meant.

"The guard from the first day who was speared, Rain and another one of the guards was killed when they were questioning them," he explained.

Three people. Three people in the span of nearly three days. Not great odds statistically.

"Oh."

"Yeah," he said.

"We should actually be moving out of here today too," he added, changing the subject.

The thought of getting out of the bunker made me excited. It would be nice to live above ground, I had only get to see such a small glimpse of the Earth.

"Do you know when?" I asked curiously.

"Will now do?" A voice asked from the doorway. I turned to see Indra standing there. I shouldn't be surprised, she has the best timing. Quiet as a mouse too. I just nodded my head in response.

"Are they well enough to leave?" she asked, motioning to the three men still situated comfortably in their bed. Penn spoke up but Indra kept her gaze set on me. Thinking everything over I responded.

"Yes. Nyko and Jaxon will probably be a little stiff and slow moving for a few more days, but as long as they change their bandages or come to see me or Lucas, they could probably leave. Penn just needs to not strain his shoulder for another week and he'll be fine as well."

"Very good," she said before saying something to the others in their language. "Grab what you need for today and follow me."

What would I need? I grabbed one of the backpacks and shoved some general supplies into it quickly. I put one of the med kits into my bag as well, it was one of the emptier ones but still had basic first aid supplies. It would be good if something happened and we couldn't get back to the bunker. I also reached behind me and unclipped the knife on my pants and put it into the front pocket of the backpack. If anything happened it wouldn't do me much good against these guys anyways.

Turning I saw that Lucas was ready by the door with a backpack of his own. I looked back to the three men we had been treating to see all of them in the process of standing up or stretching muscles that had been inactive for days. I almost wanted to say goodbye to them, but who was I kidding this wasn't going to be the last of them - I was sure of it. The way they all watched me walk out assured me of it.

* * *

><p><strong>Author note here: Apologies for the long delay between updates! I travelled over the holidays and the place I was staying didn't have internet access! (the audacity) Thankfully I am somewhere now that does and will be returning to a fairly normal schedule shortly so expect more regular updates! <strong>

**Thank you to everyone who has followed/favorited/reviewed this story it really does make me very excited. Please, please, please continue to do so! **


	9. What big claws you have

I sat on the wooden log near my new home. It wasn't much, just an old empty concrete building. It had no windows or even a door, but the roof kept the rain out, and I had found some leather tarps that passed for curtains at the doorway that gave me some semblance of privacy. It was better than nothing. Pulling my legs up to my chest I groaned at the sight of my pants.

You can't even tell that these were white at one point, I thought to myself. I absent mindedly tried to rub some of the dirt off my leg but the stains were already set in. Its been nearly a week now since it was decided that we would stay with the forest people, and that meant nearly a week since I had taken a shower or changed clothes. Running my hand through my hair and over all the knots and tangles I groaned again - yup, that was going to have to change soon or I was going to be sporting dreadlocks like Nyko.

Speaking of who, today would be the first day since we landed that I wouldn't be spending with the healer. It had been decided that we would be coupled with our closest counterparts in their society to share our knowledge and learn how to survive, so that left me with Nyko most days. Lucas had taken to trailing behind one of their animal healers, apparently three healers was considered to be a little opulent, but from what he told me he seemed to enjoy the change in pace.

Others from our group had adapted well as well, already changes were being made in their crop fields and they had started rebuilding some of the structures that had caught fire when our pod landed. Relations were tense the first couple days, but we were making progress. The thought brought a smile to my face. Maybe this was do-able.

I grabbed my backpack that I had made a habit to keep nearby and shoved an extra blanket I had found inside as well. Today was my day off of sorts and I was going to make the most of it. I double checked my pack making sure I had everything that I thought I would need and made my way out east into the trees. One of the women from the camp told me about a lake that would be perfect to wash up in and I was determined to find it.

I moved at a leisurely pace, even though we had been here for days the forest constantly amazed me. Everything was so green and alive. The trees climbed high above my head and I found myself stopping more than once to admire the way a group of vines had spiraled up a tree trunk or to watch small animals jump from branch to branch overhead. So much better than the Arc.

I inhaled deeply, enjoying the simple, clean smell of the forest. I could also vaguely hear the sound of rushing water so I knew I must be getting closer. Good, I was eager to be clean.

A few minutes later I found what I was looking for. A crystal clear stream that was running into a wide lake that was another half a mile downstream. The water was moving slowly and looked deep enough to reach my shoulders so I set my pack down.

I took a quick glance around and didn't notice anything out of the normal. I grabbed the extra blanket I brought and laid it out on a rock near the water and then slowly started stripping out of my clothes. They'll be easier to wash and will dry faster if I just take them off I reasoned. I laid out my brown, but once-white-jeans and placed my tank top and over shirt next to them - their black color equally spoiled. I looked down as I stood bare in my bra and boy-short style underwear, they used to have a word for this when people lived on Earth nearly a century ago. I thought for a moment and then remembered the pictures we used to see in history class - bathing suits! I don't know why it changed from underwear to a bathing suit just because of what you were doing in it, but I was just going to go with it.

I slowly started to walk into the water, shit that's cold. Okay, just have to get this over with real quick I told myself as I moved faster out into the water until it was deep enough for me to dunk my head under the water. Nope, still cold.

I took my time as I floated in the water scrubbing the layers of dirt and grime off my skin, eventually adapting to the temperature. It felt nice to finally be clean again, though I was still unsure what I was going to do about my rats-nest of my hair. Maybe I could ask someone to borrow theirs when I got back home - thinking of some of the women whose hair was as long as mine. My first instinct was to ask Nyko, seeing as he was who I spent most of my time with but I doubt with dreads like he has that he would have need of a comb. Jaxon also came to mind, his hair was brushed out and neatly braided and brushed the day after we had all moved out from the healer's building, but I hadn't seen him since then and I doubted he would let me borrow anything even if I did ask.

I finished washing my clothes, semi happy that they now didn't look as filthy. When I stepped out of the water I wrapped the blanket around me, I would have to wait a little while until my clothes were dry enough to put back on comfortably. A snapping of branches to my left caught my attention though. Turning I looked into the trees.

"Hello?" I called out. I couldn't see anything moving in the trees, but I had been here long enough to learn that if these people didn't want to be seen then you would never catch a glimpse of them.

"Hello?" I called out again, wrapping the blanket tighter around me. Maybe it was just my imagination? I was about to turn back to my clothes when another branch snapping caught my attention, it was closer this time. My eyes scanned the tree line quickly still not seeing anything.

Okay, so deep breaths Cole. You have a few options here. It could be all in your head. Rustling bushes quickly pushed aside that thought though as I took a few steps back, careful not to get stuck in the water.

Water, I could always wade in deeper and hope that whatever it was couldn't swim. But then again I couldn't really swim well either, that would put me at a disadvantage. Or I could gather up my stuff and run back home.

As I ran through scenarios in my head my mind was quickly made up when a giant cat appeared out from one of the dense bushes lining the stream. It was half the size of a horse but as broad was one. It's fur was shaggy beige and looked like it would be soft, but its long claws and sharp teeth that extended past it's jaw made me wish that I would never be close enough to tell.

Yup. Running was good option. I could always come back and get my clothes. I looked back up at its snarling mouth, yeah, who needs clothes. I watched as it tensed and crouched down slightly. Shit.

I turned and ran, trying to keep the blanket near me without it tripping me or getting caught in the brush. I made my way back into the trees hoping that the obstacles would slow the animal down, but it did just the opposite. I could hear it gaining on me, and constantly having to weave around trees and over rocks was only slowing me down.

Another rush of fear rushed through my body as I realized that I should have already been back home by now, or least on the outskirts of town. I must have turned the wrong way. I cursed myself for not paying better attention.

As my attention drifted from my surroundings to my own stupidity I felt my foot catch on a rock. It was almost as if I fell in slow motion as I watched the ground rushing up to meet me. I tried to protect myself as well as I could, bringing my arms in front my face but as I rolled down the short hill I could feel every rock and bush scraping across my face and body.

Once I stopped rolling I tried to sit up but my head was still spinning. Groaning in pain I instinctively raised my hand to the source of pain. Gingerly touching my scalp just above my ear I hissed as I found the wound. I could feel my blood still gushing from the wound and the red coating my finger tips confirmed my theory on why I was having trouble seeing straight.

The snarl from the trees reminded me of why I was running in the first place. I tried to push myself to stand again but couldn't keep my balance with my vision focusing in and out. Shit. Not being able to get up I pushed myself back away from the sound until my back was flush against a tree.

"Help!" I yelled as the cat moved out from the trees. With my vision swimming I was seeing three cats weaving in and out of each other, I probably should have yelled for help before it was my last option I thought bitterly.

The cat just walked forward slowly, I was sure it must have smelt my blood by now. It knew I wasn't going to run anymore, and I knew that I couldn't.

"Help!" I called out weakly again. The cat just moved closer. I watched as it tensed and prepared to pounce again.

This is it. I'm going to die after a week on Earth, half naked because of a mutated cat. Not how I pictured that I would die. Anger started surging through me. If I was going to die, I wasn't going to go out crying and sniffling.

"What are you waiting for?!" I yelled at it as loud as I could. "Come on! Come kill me already, what are you waiting for?!"

I got what I wished for when it launched off its hind legs, its claws extended towards me. I closed my eyes and turned my head, bracing myself for the blow but it never came. I opened my eyes to see the cat laying on its side, regaining its composure with an arrow sticking out of it shoulder.

The cat steadied itself and roared in anger, its attention now turned back to me. It was snarling now, like I was the one who shot it. But surely whoever actually did shoot the cat would have another arrow, no one goes hunting with only one arrow right?

The cat pounced again, however a body met it half way. I watched as the man intercepted the wild cat, grabbing it by one of its paws and its throat sending it to the ground. There was a brief struggle before the man stood up leaving the cat dead. My anger faded and relief took its place.

The man knelt down in front of me, he looked oddly familiar. But there were also four of him sitting in front of me still. Their mouths were moving, was he asking me something? He must have sense my confusion because he turned away and called something back to the trees. Was there someone else there?

He stood up and him and all three of his clones, motioned for me to do the same. I just shook my head. Now there were only two of him, even injured I was able to piece together what was going on. I needed to rest and stay put until my concussion stabilized and I stopped seeing double of everything. The man had a different idea though as he wrapped his arms around my back and underneath my knees to lift me up.

I tried to say something but nothing came out. I could feel my eyes growing heavier as I adjusted to his gait. I nuzzled my head into the man's shoulder, gently grasping his dark green jacket in my hand to pull myself closer. He smells nice I registered. Like the forest, earthy with a hint of smoke. I thought how good it smelt before I drifted off to sleep.

I was awoke a while later, I felt like I had slept for hours but the lighting coming through the tree tops told me only a matter of minutes had passed. Where am I?

I looked around and noticed I was propped against a tree again with my blanket wrapped around me. I pulled it closer to me realizing again that I had left my clothes at the stream. Looking around I saw two people leaning against the trees across from me talking to each other in low voices. I wasn't seeing double anymore, that was a good sign, though everything was still slightly blurry. I rubbed my eyes and tried to focus on the scene in front of me.

To my surprise I recognized both of my saviors. As they talked Jaxon was cleaning his knife, wiping blood on some nearby leaves. Penn was situated close to him just holding his bow as he talked. I must have made a noise that alerted them I was awake because in an instant they both looked over to me. Jaxon was the first to react.

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" he questioned, his tone as demanding as his glare.

I'm feeling fine, thanks for asking, I thought sarcastically. I brought my hand back up to my head where I had felt the gash earlier. Now I could just feel the hardened dried blood in my hair. Ugh, and I had just washed it.

I looked back up to see both men still staring in my direction awaiting my response.

"I was washing down by the stream," I told them. "The cat snuck up on me, I would have been fine if it hadn't been there."

Penn snorted. I glared at him in response.

"There are other dangers in the forest," Jaxon replied. I was about to reply that I could handle myself, but the throbbing pain in my head reminded me how well that went the first time… Maybe I should have been more careful.

"Where are your clothes?" Jaxon questioned, not giving me time to fight him on the previous issue. I wrapped the blanket tighter around my body, suddenly more aware of how bare I was sitting in front of them.

"Uhm," I started to stutter. "They are still down by the stream. I was washing them and left them out on a rock to dry, along with some of my other supplies."

"Penn, go get them," Jaxon commanded, standing up.

"Why do I have too?" Penn asked as he lazily pushed off the tree he was resting on. Jaxon shot him a look before moving closer to me.

"Because I told you too," was his only response. Penn sighed and turned back into the woods, presumably in the direction I had just ran away from.

"You hit your head hard," he told me, his voice low and steady. He knelt down beside me and observed the cut on my head.

"Yeah I can feel that," I responded sheepishly. "I need to get it cleaned up, wash the dirt out, sterilize the wound - oh gosh, I might need stitches - and I need to figure out how to keep my hair out of the way, and…"

"You talk too much," Jaxon said, cutting me off mid rant. I felt my cheeks heating up as I blushed. I had a bad tendency to talk to much when I was panicked.

"Get up," he commanded, rising to his feet as well. I placed my hand on the trunk behind me as I steadied myself. I felt weak as my knees shook at my first step. Blood loss will do that to you I guess.

Jaxon moved slowly through the forest, staying ahead of me but being careful to not leave me behind. We walked for a few minutes before I felt sure enough that I could both talk and walk without falling.

"Where are we going? Back home?" I asked. He made a noncommittal sound and kept moving forward.

"Will Penn know that we moved? What if he gets lost? Those are the only pair of clothes I have, I can't walk around camp naked."

Jaxon stopped ahead of me letting out a deep sigh before he turned around and just stared at me.

"Oh, I'm talking too much again aren't I?" I asked. Jaxon just nodded once in affirmation.

"Sorry," I apologized, embarrassed yet again. We spent the rest of the trip back in silence. I just listened to his quiet footfalls in an attempt to distract myself, it was only when I realized they had stopped that I noticed we were back home and near the healer's building.

Jaxon just stood unmoving, staring in my direction. I guess this is where we part.

"Uhm, thank you for helping me today," I told him quietly, realizing that I hadn't thanked him yet for fighting off the cat. "Thank you for saving me."

It took a moment but he just nodded in response. I guess that was all I was going to get. Sighing I moved past him to walk into the healer building before I heard his voice behind me.

"Braid your hair," he called out, pausing for a moment. "It will keep it out of your cut."

And with that he turned and moved back into the forest.

I don't think I'll ever understand this place, I thought to myself as I moved into the familiar healer's building.

"Hey Nyko," I called out, startling the healer. "I uh, need a favor. Think you can braid my hair for me?"

He looked up shooting me a confused stare as he took in my bare legs and blanket wrapped body.

"I might also need stitches," I added cheekily. "I had an interesting day off." 

* * *

><p><strong>More and more character interaction from here on out! Keep reviewingfollowing/favoriting! **


	10. Rain on the Parade

Yawning as I sat up from my makeshift bed of blankets and my lone solitary pillow, I gently touched the side of my head. Nyko had made two tight braids on the right side of head that ran over my ear to keep it out of my wound that he had stitched shut for me - not before a long lecture on the dangers of going out into the forest alone though. He parted my hair above the two braids and flipped it to the other side wildly. I thought I looked ridiculous with my hair all wild and untamed, but Nyko quieted me telling me instead that I finally looked like I was starting to fit in with them. Which I took as a compliment from the normally quiet and slightly bossy healer.

Content that the braids had stayed tight throughout the night and that the stitches hadn't pulled, I finally stood up from my blanketed haven. Along with a new hairstyle, I had also received new clothes even though Penn had eventually returned with my backpack. A woman had brought new clothes over while Nyko was still lecturing me, dropping them off wordlessly with only a nod in my direction. Apparently running around in nothing but a blanket was frowned upon even on Earth. But I wasn't going to complain, anything - even just a blanket - was better than returning to my old ones that despite being washed were still filthy. Luckily I didn't have to now.

Adjusting my new forest colored canvas jacket, I made my way outside. Typically I would have already been on my way to the healer's building to work, however, Nyko insisted I rest for at least a day despite my protests.

"Maybe I should just explore a little bit," I muttered to myself as I ran through different ideas in my head. But as I watched people move past me to go about their day I realized that minus the area around the healer's building, I wasn't very familiar with the village itself.

"Has to be safer than the forest," I rationalized, as I started to follow a group of people heading towards the center of the camp. The healer's building was on the outskirts of the village, so I decided that I would start in the center and work my way out, that would also help prevent me from getting too lost.

I followed the group in front me for a few minutes, trying to look as if I already knew where I was heading. However, as we neared the center a commotion from a few buildings next to me caught my attention. I wonder what all the yelling is about? People here were normally pretty quiet.

Others had heard it as well and had went over to investigate. I must have came in on the last part of the argument I thought as I saw two men angrily walk away from each other. I looked around trying to figure out what they may have been arguing about but nothing looked out of place. I was lost in thought when I was suddenly shoved to the ground.

What the hell?

"You shouldn't stand in the way of a _gona, _ little _fisa_," the man said with a growl. I looked up and vaguely recognized him, he was the man with the nails embedded in his gloves. The man who had scratched my cheek the first day here!

"What?" I replied hazily still trying to figure out what had happened. And what is a _fisa_? Did he just insult me? Not expecting him to reply I sat up on my knees as I started to stand up off the ground.

"Being on your knees in front of me suits you little _fisa_," he said menacingly with a slight chuckle.

"Excuse me?" I asked disbelievingly. How dare he, I thought to myself as I made a mental note to ask Nyko the meaning of the word he kept calling me.

"Leave her be Delano," a man's voice called from behind me. The man in front of me just snorted in amusement before turning and walking away without another word.

"Are you okay girl?" the man asked me as I finally stood up and turned around to face him. He was an older man, with a white beard and a fuller figure than others I had seen here. His face was laced with concern though as he waited for me to answer.

"Yeah, yeah I'm alright, thank you," I told him as I dusted the dirt off my new black pants, wishing that they were a little looser and didn't hug my skin so much.

"Good. And ignore Delano, he always seems to be angry at something and you happened to be in his path. He means no real harm," the man told me gently.

No real harm my ass, I thought as I finished dusting myself off.

"I am Botts, I am the town's baker," he told me.

"Botts?" I questioned, before catching myself and realizing how rude that must have sounded. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that!"

Botts just chuckled before waving his hand aside, "No I understand. It is an unusual name, but it is a nickname I received many many years ago."

"Oh," I said dumbly.

"And what is your name girl? Or should I just continue to call you that," he asked pleasantly.

I mentally slapped myself. I was off to a really bad start with this man, he must think I have absolutely no manners at all.

"No, I'm sorry how rude of me! I'm just a little shaken from what happened I guess," I tried to explain. "My name is Collette, but you can just call me Cole if you'd like…"

"Cole it is then," he said, cutting off my nervous rant. "Here take some of this, it will help quiet your nerves and settle your stomach."

I just looked at the small loaf of bread he was handing me that he had pulled off the stall behind him. I shook my head shyly.

"I couldn't take that, I have nothing to pay you with," I told him sheepishly. I hadn't received payment from working with Nyko, and I wasn't sure I was ever going to. I would have to ask Nyko about a job that paid when I saw him next…

"No, no, no," he told me, chuckling again softly. "Here we trade for items, but this, this if for free. For having to deal with Delano and for being so pleasant to talk to an old man."

My cheeks flushed and I grinned slightly, "Oh well thank you Botts."

I took the loaf he offered and held it closely. The aroma instantly reached my nose and I could feel my mouth salivating. This was surely going to be better than the saltine crackers and jerky I had been hoarding from my backpack.

"Anytime, now I have to go grab the other loaves I have baking. But stop by again Cole," he told me and I promised I would. How could I say no to the nicest person I had met on Earth so far?

After leaving Botts' little store I continued to wander through the village munching on the loaf as I went. It was delicious and I decided that I would have to come up with something to trade to get him to make me some more soon.

I stopped when I found a sawed down tree trunk nearby to sit on. Resting, and still eating, I realized that I had stopped in front of what looked like a training field. Various wooden targets had been set up in different places, some with painted faces or markings, others without. I tried to take everything in when I noticed that I wasn't the only person here. A young boy who couldn't be older than 18 was shooting at distant targets not to far away from me.

He's really good, I thought to myself as I watched arrow after arrow imbed itself into his chosen target. If I could shoot like he does I wouldn't have had to run form that stupid cat.

"Is it not rude to stare in your culture?" the boy suddenly asked harshly, turning to face me.

"Uhhm?" I responded, embarrassed at being called out. I hadn't meant to stare.

"Do you have a reason for being here?" He asked, obviously annoyed with me.

"Uh, sorry. I was just sitting down to eat for a second when I noticed you practicing," I tried to explain, though he looked unimpressed.

"You're really good," I muttered quietly. The boy's expression softened slightly hearing my praise.

"How long have you been shooting?" I asked hesitantly, taking advantage of the fact that he hadn't turned away or insulted me yet.

"All my life," he responded immediately. "Since I was old enough to hold a bow."

"Uhm," I hesitated, dusting the crumbs from the bread off my lap. "Do you think, maybe, that you could teach me?"

It was a longshot and I knew it, but I smiled slightly when he didn't automatically say no. He seemed to think it over for a moment, but kept his gaze trained on me.

"Why?" he asked shortly.

I shrugged my shoulders, "I want to learn how to protect myself, I had a run-in with an animal in the woods the other…."

"No," he interrupted. "Why you want to learn is clear. I meant why did you ask me?"

"Oh, well, I'm not sure," I told him honestly. "I wasn't going to ask anyone at all until I started watching you practice. And like I said, you're really good…"

I realized that I hadn't really answered his question, but I wasn't sure myself what made me ask him. I didn't even realize I wanted to learn until I saw him shoot.

"I'm alright, but if you want a good teacher you should ask Penn or Jaxon," he told me, his voice losing its harsh edge.

"Why would I ask them?" I questioned. I doubted either of them would have the patience to deal with me anyways, especially after yesterday. But the boy started laughing at my question.

"You're not serious are you?" he fired back. But my blank stare quickly stopped his fit of laughter.

"Wow, you are….Uhm well Penn is the best archer of our clan, and Jaxon, he's the best warrior from the North. They're both lethal with a bow, and Jaxon could teach you how to protect yourself with just about any weapon if you were interested," he explained.

I thought that over for a second. I had no idea that they were both such great fighters, but the boy's tone as he described them held nothing but ultimate respect and reverence for the two.

"What do you mean from the north? Is Jaxon not part of your clan?" I asked him.

"Man you really don't know anything do you?" he replied shaking his head. I narrowed my eyes and glared at him.

"No need to be rude," I responded huffily. It wasn't my fault that I landed in the middle of some complicated radioactive warrior tribe. It's not like there's a manual for survival down here…

"It's the truth though," he said, continuing quickly so I couldn't respond. "But, to make it simple Jaxon is part of our clan now. But his people originate from the northern territories, but after a harsh winter they were forced to move and came to join us. We have always had an alliance with their clan, and now we have merged the two. Haven't you noticed that they look a little different from us?"

I nodded slightly. I had noticed slight differences, but still it was hard to differentiate when everything down here was so foreign. That must be why some of their tattoos are red and the others are navy I noted though.

"Yeah, they wear their hair funny, it's all braided and brushed. And they talk with a different accent to," the boy rambled. But I made notes of everything he was saying, it was definitely useful to know.

"Yeah but to me everyone here wears their hair funny and talks with a weird accent," I explained gently, not wanting to insult the boy. But he just laughed.

"You're different than the other sky people," he told me as he moved to rest on the end of his bow.

"What do you mean?" I asked as I scrunched my nose at him. I was just like everyone else on the pod…

"I don't know how to explain it in your language, but you just are. Not in a bad way though," he said, quickly clarifying.

I tilted my head, that didn't make any sense.

"I tell you what, I'll teach you how to shoot a bow and arrow if you give me the rest of that bread," he said suddenly, eyeing the half of the loaf I had left.

"I'll give you a quarter of it," I countered. I had been living off of boxed food for the past week, the bread was the first piece of actually cooked food I had eaten and I wasn't eager to just give it away.

"At least half or you'll have to find someone else to teach you," he replied easily as if he expected my resistence.

"Fine," I sighed, giving in. "I'll give you half, but you better be with it."

I tore the loaf in half and gave him the bigger of the two pieces. He smiled cheekily as he took a bite out of it. I tore a smaller piece off my remaining portion and ate it as well, savoring it now that it was all I had left.

"I'm Cole by the way," I told him after a moment. He swallowed the bread he was chewing and smirked.

"Aritgas."

"Why can't any of you have normal names? How am I ever supposed to remember that?" I teased, even though I was semi-serious. He looked at me shocked, but he was still smirking.

"Well what kind of name is Cole?" he responded.

"A normal one," I told him as I rolled my eyes. He just laughed in response.

"Well what would you know? You're like ten," I continued, starting to laugh also.

He put his hand on his hip and narrowed his eyes trying to look intimidating, but I just started laughing harder. He looked like a little boy just told he was going to be in time-out.

"I'm sixteen for your information," he replied, still glaring but starting to smile a bit too.

"Sure, sure."

"Look, do you want to learn or not," he said, pointing his bow out towards the target with his arrows still resting in it. Not wanting to miss this opportunity I stopped laughing and stood up.

"Yes," I said determinedly.

He spent the next few hours teaching me how to stand and properly hold a bow. He had me notch the arrow and pull back as if I was going to shoot it over and over until my arms burned, each time correcting my posture and grip. But he refused to actually let me shoot until I could hold it properly. At what seemed to be the hundredth time of pulling back the string I waited for him to correct me on something that I had missed, at this point I was getting irritable. I was still hungry, my arms felt as if they were on fire and to make it all worse others from the clan were starting to make their way to the field to practice themselves - all of them eyeing me with some degree of uncertainty.

"Ignore them and focus," Artigas told me as he moved my hand in the front down slightly. "If your hand is too high then when you release the string it will snap back on your wrist."

I tried to imprint where he moved my hand to memory and gently released the tension on the string.

"Do it again," he commanded. I groaned but did as he said. This time he didn't correct me.

"Good, now aim and shoot," he said as if it was the easiest thing in the world. I let the tension ease in the bow as I just stared at him excitedly.

"I can actually shoot an arrow now?!"

"Not now, you just dropped it," he said, his tone teasing as had become common throughout my training.

He picked it up and handed it back to me, "try to actually hold on to the arrow this time."

I ignored him and placed the arrow back on the notch and pulled back, going through the checklist of everything he had taught me. I looked at him out of the corner of my eye and saw him nod in approval. I took a deep breath in - like he had told me to do - and focused on the target. It was only maybe 15 feet away, I could do this. I released the arrow and watched it soar wide of the target by at least five feet. That wasn't even the worst part, the string had snapped back and whipped my wrist and I groaned partly in pain and partly in embarrassment.

"Shit that hurts," I whined holding my wrist to my chest after thrusting the bow in Artigas direction. Behind me I heard someone clapping. I turned and instantly glared.

Penn was standing a few feet behind me with his bow across his back clapping slowly while laughing at me. A few others were near him, including Jaxon, they were minding their own weapons but watching me none the less.

"That was excellent," Penn taunted as he stopped clapping and moved towards me.

"Why didn't you tell me my hand was to high?" I asked Artigas accusingly, still cupping my wrist. He just shrugged.

"I did, about twenty times. I figured it would finally get through to you if you learned how much it hurt."

"Smart kid," Penn added.

"No one asked you," I barked at him, embarrassed that he had witnessed that. I mean, Penn of all people. No one else would have said anything to me, but it just had to be Penn.

"Are we done for the day," I turned and asked Artigas.

"Oh don't stop now, it was just starting to get good," Penn interrupted. His tone was teasing, but I was too embarrassed to not take it personally.

"No," Artigas told me, handing me his bow again before I could just walk away. "Do it again."

I turned my glare on him. He couldn't be serious.

"Penn was bad at it when he started too, so was I," he explained. "No one is just automatically good at anything, you have to practice. So, do it again."

I sighed but gave in, picking up another arrow out of his quiver laying near us. I ignored Penn as he walked away, muttering to himself that he wasn't nearly as bad as me when he started.

"Fine."

Artigas moved us slightly closer to the target and nodded for me to shoot again. I notched the arrow, careful this time to keep my hand out of the way of the string and focused on the target. Releasing the arrow it still flew crooked but hit the very edge of the target. Barely, but I would take it. Smiling I turned back to Artigas who just had a knowing look in his eyes.

"I did it," I told him, he just nodded. I paused for a moment, taking the time to pick up another arrow. "Are you sure you're only 16?"

He just rolled his eyes at me.

"No, I feel like I've just gained at least ten years standing here and waiting for you," he replied, donning his signature smirk. I just smiled back and shrugged my shoulders.

I continued practicing until it started to get dark, I hadn't even realized that the whole day passed. Looking around I noticed that most of the other warriors had left as well. Artigas, sensing my thoughts turned and collected his quiver and took his bow back.

"Not bad for a sky girl," he said cheekily before telling me he would find me later in the week to practice again and walking off towards the target to collect the arrows that I had managed to get in it and searching for the others that had missed their mark.

I sighed contently, happy with how the day turned out before turning to make my back home. I think I still had some jerky left, that would have to do for dinner. Walking back I noticed Jaxon still at the field cleaning his knives, or swords, or whatever they were. They looked long and sharp, so I had no intention of finding out how they were used. But before I realized it I was making my way towards him.

He didn't say anything as I approached but looked up at me as I stopped near him.

"Staring isn't considered polite in our culture," he told me, not looking up from his weapon. His voice was passive, and I noticed that he did have a slightly different accent than Artigas.

"Sorry," I apologized, before laughing to myself. "That's actually the second time today someone has had to mention that to me."

He just grunted and started to sharpen his blade. Guess I should get to the point.

"I wanted to thank you actually," I said, suddenly a little unsure of what I was doing. He looked up now, as if waiting for me to finish.

"For saving me yesterday. That cat would have killed me if you hadn't shown up," I added.

He continued to look at me for a moment. I thought I saw his eyes flash up to the side of my head, and I subconsciously raised my hand to finger the braids Nyko had done for me. Jaxon just turned his attention back to the weapon in his lap.

"I know," he said finally, his tone even and steady as if we were talking about the weather and I wasn't thanking him for going out of his way to save my life.

"Usually people say 'you're welcome' or 'no problem' when someone thanks them," I replied hastily, my tone having a slight bite in it. I hadn't meant to say it out loud, but his flippant behavior was starting to irritate me. Apparently I had his full attention now though as he stood easily towering over me with his eyes narrowed.

"Saying 'no problem' implies that it wasn't a bother to save you, when in fact it was. And to say 'you're welcome' might give you the impression that I would do similar favors for you in the future, when I will not," he replied, his tone now harsh.

"Then why did you even bother in the first place?" I asked, now fully angry at the fact that my life was obviously meaningless to him. My question must have caught him off guard though as his expression softened slightly and he looked off to the side.

"Well?" I pressed after not getting an answer. "If it was such a bother then why even do it in the first place? Why not let the mutant cat eat me!"

Jaxon sighed before turning his gaze back on me.

"I don't know," he admitted quietly. I was about to lay into him some more when I realized what his answer actually was.

"What?" I asked unbelievingly. He sighed again putting his weapon, which I had conveniently forgot he was holding, back into it's leather holster.

"You heard me," he said, raising his voice a little louder.

"Yeah, I just don't believe you," I told him, causing him to look up at me instantly.

"You learn to shoot a bow and you suddenly become very outspoken," he pointed out, though his tone wasn't accusing.

My eyes widened at his accusation before I realized how I was acting. Who was I to question him? I dropped my eyes to the ground and shrunk back into my shell as I suddenly became very shy and uncomfortable standing in front of him. This was a mistake.

Jaxon sighed and looked almost worried as he watched me.

"Yeah, uh, sorry," I mumbled. "I better head back, it will take me longer to find my way if it's dark."

My excuse sounded plausible, but I doubt it fooled Jaxon. None the less, he let me leave without another word.

It was completely dark by the time I found my home again. I forewent food, despite my growling stomach, and immediately sunk into my pile of blankets. Today was embarrassing. What was I thinking going out like that?

Between giant cats, Jaxon, Penn and men like Delano, how am I ever going to survive down here? I groaned loudly as I pulled one of the blankets up to my head. I feel asleep hoping that tomorrow would bring better things. 

* * *

><p><strong>Some new characters for you guys! Plus more Penn and Jaxon interaction. Keep reviewing and letting me know what you like or want more of! <strong>  
><strong>Also, a translation of the Grounder words I used will be in the next chapter! <strong>


	11. Horse of a Different Color

"Hey Nyko?" I called out as I stripped one of the cots in the healer's building. Our last patient had just left after we had treated a minor wound so it was just the two of us, a rare occurrence that I thought I should take advantage of. He grunted in acknowledgement but didn't turn to face me as he continued to organize vials of herbs on the other side of the room.

"What's a _fisa_?" I asked, turning to put the dirty blankets in a bag in the corner. My arms burned from the light lifting, shooting arrows all day certainly had taken its toll. It was an obvious reminder that I was in no way fit for this world - a thought that had kept me up for most of the night.

"You are," Nyko responded, still not breaking from his task. I moved over closer to him and watched as he sorted the vials.

"Is that supposed to be an insult?" I teased, knowing Nyko wouldn't be purposely cruel to me. Over the past week interacting with him had become easy and fluid, we had a good basic understanding of each other.

Nyko sort of chuckled in response as he shook his head.

"It means healer," he told me. Okay, so definitely not an insult.

"What about gona?" I asked. He paused for a moment and looked up at me.

"It is our word for warrior," he replied. "Why the sudden vocabulary lesson?"

I shrugged and turned so I could lean my back against the table.

"I ran into someone, or rather they ran into me and he kept calling me a 'little fisa,' and I couldn't tell if they were insulting me or not," I explained. "Which reminds me, how do I get something to trade to get Bott's to make me some more of his bread? It was delicious yesterday."

Nyko stepped back at the table and studied me for a moment.

"Botts was the one who ran into you?" he asked confused.

"No, some man named Delaney, or Dylan, or something did. Botts helped me up after and gave me a loaf of bread," I clarified. Nyko's expression darkened as he listened to me retell what had happened.

"Hm, it must have been Delano," he mused. I just shrugged, I could care less what the man's name was, he was just an ass as far as I was concerned.

"Stay away from him," he warned, his normally even baritone taking on a more serious edge.

"It's not like I wanted him to run into me," I replied, but Nyko seemed unimpressed with my logic.

"Is he the one who did this to you?" he asked as he reached out to grab my forearm gently. Looking down I saw the long red and angry looking welt on my wrist that had formed overnight. Sighing I pulled my arm back.

"No, that was my own fault. Artigas was teaching me how to shoot a bow yesterday and I had my hand to high and the cord snapped my wrist when it recoiled," I told him. He nodded his head in understanding.

"You should be more careful, and try to let your old injuries heal before you add new ones," he advised as he returned to sorting herbs, not before making a pointed look at my still healing scalp.

"I never realized you cared so much," I replied sarcastically, nudging him with my elbow. He grunted and shrugged me off.

"Don't let it go to your head."

I laughed at his response and moved away from the table. I would never tell him aloud, but I was happy that Nyko fretted over me in his own way. It made me feel less alone here on Earth, even if it was just for a moment. I smiled back at Nyko at the thought, happy that he still had his back turned to me.

"So what's the plan for today?" I asked, changing the subject. Most days passed slowly, minus some freak accident things stayed pretty quiet for me and Nyko, however, that never meant there was nothing to do. I swear Nyko had a chores list that was damn near a mile long. Sometimes I despised the busywork, but on days like these I looked forward for anything to keep my hands and mind busy.

"We need to replenish our stock," he told me. "I'll gather some from the forest, you can go down to our crop fields. I asked them weeks ago to store some herbs for me, they should be ready now."

Sounded easy enough. I was happy that Nyko had chosen to do the forest collecting himself, after my last adventure I was a little hesitant to return to the woods. Now, I just had to find where the crop fields were, I hadn't come across them the other day. I grabbed my pack and jacket from off the wall, and after quick directions from Nyko headed out.

It was like any other day so far. Cool with a slight breeze and green, still so green. I moved throughout the town in the direction Nyko had pointed me in and took in all the sights and sounds. After I passed by the empty training grounds from the day before I realized I was exploring all new territory and a brief shock of excitement ran through me. Every day is something new I thought to myself.

I was surprised when I easily came across the crop fields, even more so when I found Lucas in one of the buildings nearby.

"Look at you Cole, assimilating well I see," Lucas said as he pulled me into a hug. He smelled earthy and dirty and the odor made me scrunch my nose. He noticed and laughed.

"It's the horses, the smell tends to linger," he explained. I tilted my head and sent him a confused stare.

"What are horses?"

Lucas just stared at me before coming to some sort of realization.

"That's right! You haven't seen them yet! We saw pictures of them in school don't you remember?" he asked as he grabbed my hand and pulled me along behind him. I winched slightly as he unknowingly grabbed my injured arm.

He led me into a wooden building that had stalls cut out. I could hear sounds of heavy breathing and stomping but had yet to catch a glimpse of one of Lucas' horses. Dragging me behind still, he finally came to a stop in front of one of the stalls.

"Come on, this one won't bite you," he said. I looked at him warily, what did he mean by this one? Are horses normally vicious?

I moved closer to him and took a sharp breath as I found what he called a horse. It was gigantic! It was standing with it's side to us and I marveled on how long and tall the creature was. I had remembered seeing pictures of an animal like this back on the Arc, but pictures had done it no justice. It's body was lined with muscle and it's tail whipped back and forth lazily. I stumbled back when it turned to face us though.

"Do they… Do they all look like this?" I asked hesitantly. The creature had four eyes staring at me as a second, smaller head protruded from the side of it's long face.

"No, not all. A few of them have mutations like this one, but other then the extra set of eyes and nose, it doesn't seem to affect them in any way," Lucas answered as if the beast next to him wasn't terrifying.

"Here, come give this to him. It's his favorite," Lucas told me as he held a carrot out for me to take. The horse must have also seen it because it snorted and moved closer.

"Uhm, no it's okay," I answered. As the horse moved closer I realized how big it actually was and was suddenly feeling not so confident about it not attacking me.

"Come on Cole, he won't bite you I promise," Lucas said as he tossed me the carrot. I caught it on instinct and just started at it in my hands. The horse impatient with the exchange whined.

"You're not scared of a horse are you Cole?" A voice from the doorway called out. Turning my head I saw Artigas, Jaxon and another warrior standing and staring at me. Must someone always be present for my most embarrassing moments?!

"I'm not scared, I've just never seen a horse before … and he's awfully big," I told Artigas, realizing after that it sounded exactly like I was scared.

"He won't hurt you Cole, unless you keep taunting him with that carrot," Lucas said, turning my attention back to him. He was trying to joke around and defuse the situation but it didn't help my nerves.

"Come on you'll be fine," Artigas added, moving closer to the stall. Jaxon followed while the other warrior they were with moved off towards a different horse.

Can't look like a coward now Cole. How bad can it be? Worst he can do is eat my entire hand …. Okay, so maybe I wasn't so great at pep talking myself. Taking a deep breath I decided that I should just get it over with and moved closer to the stall. Listening to Lucas' directions I held the carrot out in the palm of my hand and extended it towards the horse. I nearly flinched when I felt its lips graze over my hand, but before I could even react the horse had grabbed the carrot and was happily munching on it.

Well that wasn't so bad. I smiled slightly as Lucas placed a hand on my back and moved me closer to the stall.

"Put your hand out again," he instructed. I looked at him questioningly.

"But I don't have any more food…"

"I know, just trust me okay?" Lucas asked. I nodded and put my hand out again, Lucas adjusted my wrist so my palm was verticle this time. The horse still chomping away moved forward only slightly to nudge its second nose agaisnt my hand. I pulled back slightly at the cold touch but realizing that it wasn't going to eat me started petting it again. I turned back to the group of men still watching me and smiled.

"Not so scary now huh?" Artigas asked with a lopsided grin on his face. "Maybe next time you can come riding with us."

I pailed at the thought. Petting the horse was one thing, riding it was something else entirely. I looked back up at the horse, yup, definitely not getting on that any time soon.

"Maybe after our next archery lesson?" Artigas asked.

"Archery?" Lucas asked from next to me, his hand still resting on my back. I looked up at him and shrugged before turning my attention to Artigas and Jaxon. I was debating on how to tell him I wasn't going to be taking archery lessons again, not after the scolding I had received from Jaxon the other evening. He had been right to call me out on my attitude and I was no longer feeling as adventurous as I had the day before.

Jaxon seemingly knowing where the conversation was headed moved past Artigas toward the stall. I was confused on what he was doing until he grabbed a rope from the wall and unlatched the lock on the stall's gate. He barely looked at me before settling on glaring at Lucas instead. His eyes dropped to my waist before he roughly pushed past Lucas to get into the stall of the horse I had just been feeding. Lucas said nothing as he regained his footing, his hand no longer on my back, and glared in Jaxon's direction. It was decided, I would never understand men.

I sighed before focusing on Artigas who just looked on with mild amusement.

"I think it will be a while before the next archery lesson," I admitted quietly.

"That's probably for the best, we don't want you getting hurt Cole," Lucas said from beside me. I absentmindedly rubbed my sore wrist - if only he knew.

"Why's that?" Artigas asked, fully ignoring Lucas. "You seemed pretty anxious to learn the other day."

"I guess I just changed my mind," I told him lamely, looking away to avoid his gaze. "My place here isn't as a fighter anyways…"

"Well okay I guess," Artigas responded, not entirely convinced. I thought that I heard Jaxon stop moving in the stall, but as he reappeared leading the horse out I thought that I must have been imagining it.

"Anyways, I came down here to collect some herbs for Nyko, do you know where I could find them?" I asked turning back to Lucas. He nodded and motioned for me to follow him.

"Is everything alright Cole?" he asked as we walked along a worn dirt path now away from the others.

"Yeah, what do you mean?" I questioned.

"You just seem different," he supplied. "I mean you even look different, and archery lessons? That's not you."

I glanced over at him before focusing on the path again. What does he know about me?

"I'm fine Lucas, just adapting I guess," I answered as a woman rose to meet us halfway with a large basket in her hands.

"_Fisa_?" she questioned, her accent much heavier than any other I heard yet. Remembering what Nyko had told me this morning I nodded my head. She handed me the basket and turned to walk away without another word.

"What's a _fisa_?" Lucas asked staring at me strangely.

I shrugged, " I am apparently."

I said my goodbyes to Lucas, who hugged me and asked me to visit more often or that he'd be forced to fake an injury to come and see me. Sighing I made my way back to the healer's building thinking over the day's events. It wasn't long until I found myself back in the comfort of the healer's walls that I snapped back to the present. Nyko had already returned and was cutting and bottling plants.

"Any troubles?" he asked, not looking up as he squeezed some nectar from a white flower that I had forgotten the name of.

"No," I told him, not sure if what had happened earlier constituted as trouble or not. "I brought these back."

He looked over the basket I set down next to him and nodded approvingly. Putting down the plant he was working on he shifted the plants in the basket around until he found a small bundle tightly wrapped and handed it to me.

"What is this?" I asked as I studied the plant. It didn't look like any medicinal herb he had shown me yet.

"It's Thyme," he responded returning to his work.

"What's it used for?" I asked, taking in the strong aroma of the leaves.

"For baking, I thought you might like to trade if for something," Nyko said. "Now go, you're distracting me."

For baking? Oh! I smiled as I figured out why he had given the plant to me.

"Thank you," I told him as I made my way out of the building and towards Bott's stand. Maybe today could turn out to be a good day after all.

It didn't take long for me to work out an exchange with Botts, apparently the herb was a key ingredient in his baking. I made a mental note to thank Nyko again later. I gave the bundle of herbs to the baker and arranged to pick up a loaf of bread every morning for the next week. My mouth was salivating just at the thought of it.

"One for the way home?" he asked, his belly jiggling slightly at the sight of me practically drooling over all his goods. Grabbing one from the far end of the table that had a white powder dusted on top he handed it to me and told me to try it. I didn't have to be told twice.

"Oh God Botts what would I do without you? This is heavenly!" I told him as I savored the sweet bread.

"Starve I would assume," he said still laughing. My grumbling stomach agreed with him. I wished him a good night and made my way home, finishing off my bread on the way. I was humming happily to myself when I noticed a figure standing by my doorway. Warily moving closer, I kept my hand close to the pocket knife I kept in my jacket pocket.

"Can I help you?" I asked, causing the figure to turn towards me. It was Jaxon, holding some sort of fur. I pulled my hand out of my pocket, it would do me no good against him anyways.

"Here," he said thrusting the beige fur into my hands before placing a nicely carved wooden bow on top of it.

"Uhm, what's the occasion?" I joked lamely as I glanced back and forth between the objects now in my hands and Jaxon.

"The blanket is made from the fur of the cougar that chased you," he said, as if that explained everything. "I have no need for another one and thought you could make use of it."

Noticing how soft it felt in my hands I knew I definitely could, but why was he giving it to me now?

Satisfied with his delivery Jaxon started to walk away.

"Not to sound ungrateful but I don't think I'll be needing the bow, I uh, decided that maybe that was a stupid idea like you said," I told him shyly. He turned back towards me and furrowed his eyebrows.

"I never said it was stupid," he replied.

"Not in those exact words I know, but.."

"It is a good skill to have," Jaxon said, cutting me off. "If it gives you a little courage to be more outspoken then so be it. It would do you some good."

I didn't respond immediately as I thought over his words. Maybe I had misunderstood him yesterday?

"I will not always be there to save you," he added, though quieter than before. My eyes met his, still the stormy grey I remembered from the first days here when he couldn't even move out of his cot. I was going to protest, but the look in his eyes told me that I would get nowhere with that.

I settled for a quiet thank you instead. I bowed my head to try and hide the embarrassed blush rising to my cheeks.

"Hm," he grunted. "...You're welcome."

With that he turned and left. I shook my head as I walked into my little home.

"I don't think I'm ever going to understand him," I said to myself as I placed the bow in the corner and unfolded my new blanket. It was more than large enough to cover me entirely and had been sewn to have the soft plush fur on both sides. If I was sure of one thing, it was that I was going to sleep great tonight.


	12. Into the Dark

"How come I have to have a babysitter?" I all but yelled at Nyko. He continued to ignore me and finished tightening his pack around his vest.

"I've been training for weeks now, ask Artigas I'm getting really good!"

"Cole," Nyko said, finally acknowledging me with a sigh. "They are going for your protection, even if you can protect yourself you still do not know these woods well enough."

I sighed in defeat, as much as I hated to admit it he was right. I fiddled with the straps to my own backpack as I waited for Nyko to finish, my two appointed guards stood not far off. We were going to collect herbs before the storm on the horizon moved in and despite me arguing until I was blue in the face, Nyko was not letting me go out alone. We would have to split up to cover more ground, which left me with Jaxon and a warrior introduced as Grimm. I was not a happy camper.

"Do you remember what you're looking for?" Nyko asked as we started to make our way out into the woods. I sighed again loudly, but nodded in response. It's not like we hadn't gone over it at least a hundred times.

"Good, then I'll go to the East and you can make your way North. Be careful," he warned, sparing a glance at the two warriors flanking me before turning and taking off. Nyko had already explained what kind of herbs we were looking for to Jaxon and Grimm before we left, so assuming that they might know where to look I followed them quietly, careful to take in my surroundings so I wouldn't miss anything.

Over the past few weeks I had started training with Artigas again, and I was glad to see that my new found strength and stamina was already coming in handy keeping up with the warriors. I was still a far cry from matching their skill, but progress was progress.

"_Hod op,_" I called from behind. I knelt down near a bed of yellow flowers and grinned, these were exactly what I needed. Picking all the ripe flowers I made sure to store them where they wouldn't get crushed. One type down, only like twenty more to go I thought sarcastically.

Most of the day went about the same. Us wandering in silence until something caught my eye and I called for them to stop. The forest around us was relatively quiet as well, only small rodents and birds dared to venture close enough to us. As we fell into a pattern the distance between myself and the warriors grew, Nyko had explained they would also be scouting out possible hunting grounds for later so when they disappeared from my line of sight I was barely bothered.

Some protection they'll be if one of those giant catashow up again though, I thought to myself as I knelt down to collect leaves from a patch of green weeds. Nyko had insisted I leave my bow behind, arguing that I wouldn't need it with both Jaxon and Grimm with me. Guess my mauled body will show him.

Standing up I dusted off my brown pants. Nyko had started teaching me what herbs I could trade to what people in order to get supplies I needed. I was thankful when I learned that the women who sewed the clothes were prone to joint pain, it meant that I now had a slow growing wardrobe that consisted of more than two pairs of pants and a tank top. Exchanging goods or services for supplies was ingenious in my opinion, made me rethink why we ever had a monetary exchange system back on the Arc - it seemed pointless now.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a large horn going off in the distance. I hadn't heard anything like it before… maybe it was some sort of animal? I groaned, that's all I needed, was some other mutant animal trying to kill me. I looked around, trying to find the source of the sound but instead found Jaxon running full speed towards me.

What is going on? I didn't get a chance to ask him as he grabbed my arm roughly and started pulling me behind him. We darted off in a different direction, meeting up with Grimm.

My lungs and legs were burning, it felt like we had been running for ages. I finally slowed to a stop, despite Jaxon's grip on me.

"What. Is. Going. On?" I asked between breaths.

"We don't have time, keep moving," Jaxon urged now pulling me by my hand to get me moving again.

"Jaxon!" Grimm's voice called out, he was standing not to far ahead of us looking around warily. "It's closing in fast, we have to move."

Jaxon nodded and started to move forward again, pulling me reluctantly behind. Then I noticed it. A thick yellow fog was sweeping the forest and was almost surrounding us - this couldn't be what we were running from could it?

Apparently it was as I heard Jaxon slip out a few curse words I recognized. He pulled me along faster. Grimm soon fell into step behind us.

"Just up ahead, were almost there," Jaxon said as he continued moving forward. I wasn't sure if he was letting us know, or trying to convince himself. The fog was nearly upon us, and just being within 30 feet of it made my hair stand on end.

We reached what looked like a slab of concrete in the middle of the forest, but as Jaxon made his way over to an iron ring I realized it must be the entrance to an underground bunker. He struggled opening the door and I felt helpless as I just stood there and watched. I looked around for Grimm but couldn't find him. Surely he didn't get stuck in the fog?

The fog was getting closer and I could see little bolts of lightning striking out. I wasn't sure what it was, but I knew I didn't want to get stuck in it. It was moving in on us, only 10 feet away now. Where could he be?

I heard a pressure release sound behind me and sighed in relief when Jaxon stood with his door open motioning for me to hurry over. Not needing to be told twice I made my way towards him. I could hear Grimm yelling now, and saw him running towards us only a foot away from the impending fog.

He must have been separated from us by the fog, I thought as I stood motionless watching him move as if it was in slow motion.

Jaxon, apparently tired of waiting for me, grabbed my shoulder roughly and pushed me towards the opening. Looking inside, everything was pitch black except with the light shining through from the open hatch, I took a deep breath - now was not the time to be afraid of the dark. I dropped myself in, falling eight feet or so before I hit the bottom. I could still hear Jaxon yelling for Grimm above me.

In a moment another body fell down next to mine as they pulled the latch close enveloping us in darkness. It was darker than dark, I couldn't even see my own hand just inches in front of my face.

"Jaxon?" I questioned softly as he tightened the seal on the door. I hadn't seen who had jumped in, but he had been the closest.

"Yes," he called back, his voice strained as he stopped fiddling with the door.

"Where's Grimm?" I asked. A nauseous feeling overwhelmed me when he didn't immediately answer, however, the screams from above us told me all I needed to know.

"He fell too far behind" he said quietly. Without being able to see him at all, it felt like I was talking to a ghost.

"Why didn't you wait?" I replied, my voice wavering every time Grimm's screams pierced the silence.

"I couldn't," he responded easily.

"What do you mean you couldn't?!" I asked, my voice becoming more demanding. "You left him out there to die!"

"I did what I had to," he replied. "If I hadn't we would be dead too."

Not wanting to argue, not even being able to focus with the sound of Grimm's cries I tried desperately to change the subject.

"What… what is that?" I asked, my voice still shaking.

"Acid fog," he replied. "It kills everything in its path."

I felt like I was going to be sick. Grimm's screams eventually stopped and in a second I almost wished they hadn't. It left me sitting in pitch black with nothing but the sounds of Jaxon's breathing coming from somewhere around me and the sound of static from the fog overhead. It was bone chilling.

"How long does it last?" I asked.

"Hours," was his only response. I sighed and turned putting my hands out in front of me as I walked forward hoping to find a wall that I could sit and lean on. Instead my foot collided with something solid on the floor causing me to cry out.

"What are you doing?" Jaxon asked somewhere from my right.

"Trying to find a damn wall so I can sit and lean against it. If we are going to be here for a while I want to at least be a little comfortable," I replied, still cursing the unknown assailant under my breath.

"Come towards my voice," he instructed after pausing for a moment. It took me a second to pinpoint his direction with the echo. I moved slowly, not wanting to trip on anything else. Eventually my hands met something solid and warm.

"Please tell me that's you," I said jokingly. He wrapped his hands around mine and maneuvered me to stand next to him with my back against a wall. I must have ran into his chest.

"Sit," he told me as I felt him sink to the ground as well. Propping one of my knees up as I laid against the wall I made myself comfortable next to him, never letting my shoulder leave contact with his in fear that I may actually lose him in the dark.

"Do you think … Do you think Nyko and the others found somewhere safe?" I asked, my voice almost a whisper. There was only the sound of the acid fog moving above ground as I waited for him to answer.

"Yes," he responded shortly, his voice as low as mine.

"Good," I said nodding to myself. "That's good."

Jaxon said nothing in response and we continued to sit in silence. As the minutes ticked by I tried to focus on my breathing, keeping it slow and even, counting the cracks in the wall behind me and just about everything else I could think of to keep my mind busy. Without any light it felt as if the walls were closing in on me, it reminded me of the Arc. It reminded me of waking up in that too small holding cell, it was meant only to be temporary but I spent months in it… It was always dark, it was always quiet….

"Anything but that…" I said quietly to myself, not quite realizing that my thoughts had become vocal until Jaxon stiffened next to me.

"Does this uh, happen often?" I asked, trying to act as if nothing happened. Maybe if I could get him to talk to me, I could use that as a distraction.

"No," he responded, not elaborating.

"Is the clan prepared for this? Do they have somewhere close to go?" I pressed.

"Yes."

"Oh, well good. Hopefully no one is injured then, it would be a shame to have to use up all the medicine we just collected so rapidly, especially since that storm is still moving in…"

"Is there something wrong?" he interrupted.

"Uhm, no? What do you mean?" I asked, feigning ignorance. Of course there was nothing wrong, I was sitting in a pitch black space that was forcing me to relive one of my worst memories, while deadly acid fog floated overhead that had already killed at least one person whose screams I kept replaying in my head if it was silent for too long. No, everything was just peachy.

"You just keep talking," he said accusingly.

"Oh that," I said, sighing. "I do that when I'm nervous, or scared, or flustered or just about feeling anything that isn't normal…"

"Hm, that's a bad habit," he responded.

Well that's sort of rude, I thought to myself. But I realized he was right, but how do you try to cope with your coping mechanism?

"Well what is it?" he asked after a moment of silence.

"What is what?" I countered, unsure of what he was asking.

"What is it that has you … not feeling normal," he said, pausing to search for the right words.

Did I tell him? He would think that I was weak, if I had learned anything from my time with the clan it was that strength was an asset and there was no place for the weak, not if you wanted to survive. But I had already basically admitted it….

"You'll think it's stupid," I told him shyly, coming to terms with neither telling him the truth or lying to him.

"Perhaps, but we can't know for sure unless you tell me," he responded, his voice even and calm as if we were discussing the weather. I often found myself envying his passiveness, it was as if nothing ever seemed to bother him, he always had things under control. I kept quiet, being scared was one thing, admitting it was another entirely.

For a half an hour or so we sat in silence, my deep breathing was failing to keep me as calm and I had to keep reminding myself that it was just in my head, that the wall behind me was not slowly creeping inward.

"Can we talk about something else," I asked suddenly, desperate for any sort of distraction.

"Why?" Jaxon asked curiously.

"I … I don't like the silence," I admitted slowly. "I need a distraction."

"From?" he questioned, his tone never wavering.

"From my mind, from the walls," I told him. I would have told him anything he asked as long as he kept talking. His baritone voice was soothing and was the best distraction I had at the moment.

"Hm …. you're scared aren't you?" he asked.

It took me a moment to admit it out loud. He told me the fog could not get past the seal, and I just shook my head. Forgetting momentarily that he couldn't see me do so.

"It's not the fog, hell it's not even death. Death I can face" I explained. "It's this feeling of being trapped. Like everything is closing in. It's the darkness causing things to shift. It's the silence. It's what it reminds me of that I can't handle."

I had admitted more than I intended, but there was no taking it back now. I waited for him to criticize me for being weak, to tell me to grow up - but it never came. Instead he spoke to me quietly for the next few hours. Telling me about his home back North, the animals they had and about how the ground was covered in a blanket of white every year. He talked to me about archery and how to fletch arrows. At points he would ask me about my home, but his questions were generic and broad, always offering me a way out if it became too sensitive.

"Do you hear that?" he asked, cutting off our conversation on food - which I had discovered was a guilty pleasure of the very in shape, toned, muscular warrior. I paused and tried to listen for anything unusual but heard nothing past the sound of our breathing.

"No?" I answered hesitantly, unsure of what I was missing.

"Exactly," he replied, standing up and moving away from me. I instantly missed his presence and felt the panic sweep over me.

"It passed," he told me as I heard him unseal the door overhead. Light came pouring in and I had to shield my eyes until they readjusted to the sun.

"Come on," he called for me as he jumped up, grabbing the edge of a broken ladder and pulled himself back topside. I groaned as I stood up. My muscles were already complaining from having been inactive for so long and as I looked at the broken rungs hanging almost a foot above my head I knew that getting out would not be as nearly as easy as getting in was.

"Jump up, if you can reach the ladder I'll pull you up," Jaxon explained, apparently sensing my hesitation. I found myself wishing I had taken Artigas up on his morning runs, while my limited diet had inadvertently caused me to loose some extra weight, I was still self conscious.

"Jump, we have to get back before the storm comes in," he reminded me as he knelt next to the door waiting for me. I sighed again. Now or never I guess.

I took a few steps back and ran forward, putting all my effort into jumping high enough to grab the ladder. I was surprised when both my hands found the metal easily, but quickly became distressed when I realized how slippery it was. How had Jaxon done this by himself?

Before I could fall though Jaxon's hands grasped my wrists tightly. It hurt slightly, but I wasn't about to complain. And as if I weighed nothing he pulled me out of the black hole and onto my feet.

We moved at an even paced jog through the forest on the way back. Jaxon led as I followed only a few feet behind him. Just as the sun began to set we returned back to the village, stopping on the outskirts when we ran into Nyko, Penn, Artigas and many of the other warriors I had come to recognize.

"You're back, good," Nyko said as he walked over, grabbing both of my shoulders and holding me at arms length as he looked me over for injuries. I laughed and rolled my eyes.

"I'm fine Nyko," I told him, but he just grunted in response happy enough with his quick evaluation. His eyes moved over to Jaxon, but I noticed he did not get the same lookover I received. I wasn't sure if I should feel flattered or insulted.

"Grimm?" he asked, not having to expand upon that for us to understand what he meant. I lowered my eyes to the ground. Out of my peripheral I saw Jaxon just shake his head softly in response.

"_Taim yu drag raun, taim yu ge ban au,_" Jaxon told Nyko solemnly. Nyko nodded in understanding.

A moment later I got blindsided as a person rushed into me grabbing me in a rough hug, or death embrace - I wasn't sure which one yet.

"Cole! I'm glad you're okay, I heard you got caught out in the fog," Lucas said, loosening his hold on me, but not releasing me entirely from his side. My discomfort must have been evident because Nyko quickly pulled me out of his grasp and Jaxon was now standing by my side glaring at Lucas.

"Have some respect boy," Nyko told Lucas, who looked at me apologetically. My irritation waned.

"I'm fine Lucas, thanks to Jaxon," I told him. Lucas smiled.

"Good, I'm glad he was able to keep you safe," he said. I thought I heard Jaxon mumble something under his breath but I couldn't be sure.

"Did you come all the way out here just to check on me?" I asked curiously. Lucas' home was on the other side of camp from where we were, and while it wasn't exactly a trek it would have been a inconvenience for him at the least.

"Well yeah," he answered, rubbing the back of his head with an embarrassed blush. "That and to ask if you wanted to stay with me during the storm.."

"What?" I asked dumbfounded. Lucas and I had gotten along well and become close during our time here, but I don't know why he would suddenly ask me to stay with him.

"Uhm, because of your roof you know? You told me it leaks, and a lot of people are staying with friends or in some of the bigger buildings to ride out the storm and I thought you might like to stay with someone you know," he explained quickly.

I sent Nyko and Jaxon a confused look. Was that really the protocol for storms?

"Some choose to stay with friends or family, others will stay in our storage buildings. Our healer's building is one of the areas that will be open for the village," Nyko explained. "I anticipated your problem and have already saved you the cot you prefer."

Hm, cot or Lucas? The cot would probably talk less, I thought to myself instantly feeling bad right after though. Lucas was a good friend, and just concerned for me. But sleep. In the end my frazzled brain made the decision easily.

"I appreciate it Lucas, but I think I'll stay in the healer's building tonight. It would be best for at least one of the healers to stay there in case someone gets injured during the storm," I explained lamely.

"Oh, are you sure?" Lucas asked, sounding disappointed. Though I did notice both Jaxon and Nyko relax slightly next to me.

"Yeah, I appreciate the offer though."

"Okay, I'll see you soon though?" he asked as he turned to leave. I smiled at him and reassured him I would be back in the stable before he even missed me.

"Gather what supplies you need and I will meet you at the healer's building Cole," Nyko said to me once Lucas had left. I nodded and watched him walk off. Jaxon made to leave as well before I called out to him.

"Uhm, I never said thank you," I told him sheepishly, suddenly very interested in my worn boots. "So thank you."

"Hm, you're welcome," he grunted in response, now facing me again.

"You know, this smart ass I know once told me that you shouldn't tell people 'you're welcome'. It implies that you would be willing to do other favors for them," I teased lightly, not oblivious to his change in behavior compared to my first days on Earth to now.

He laughed slightly and I could have sworn I saw the always straight faced warrior smirk slightly at me.

"Go get your stuff and head to the healer's building. You think you can manage that without having a near death experience?" he joked back.

Laughing I just shook my head, "No promises."

Moving in the direction of my house, or at least that I thought my house was at I started to make a mental list of the little things I would need to gather before the storm. I had made it only a few feet before Jaxon's voice stopped me.

"By the way Cole, he probably didn't mean to say that you shouldn't say 'you're welcome', only that you should be selective on who you extend that offer," I heard him say behind me, his voice almost being lost against the sound of the wind.

I turned to question him but he had already made his way some distance away from me. I would have to save my question for another time.

I gathered a few supplies and my cat-fur blanket and made my way to the healer's building. Already a few villagers had started to congregate and set up their own little areas. I moved towards the back where Nyko was arranging his own cot, I had noticed he had pulled my favorite one away from the others and arranged it closer to his as well.

The council was still out on whether or not I was okay with protectiveness over me that had been established by virtually every male I had met - even Penn of all people was picky over who he would let insult me of all things - but as Nyko tossed me a small leather pouch full of jerky I knew he made himself I found myself content with it at least for now.

* * *

><p><strong>Another chapter out! I started my last semester of college this week so bare with me as I figure out how to juggle a huge capstone project, a heavy work schedule, this story and life! Hint: <em><span>Reviews help motivate me<span>_, and actually make me incredibly excited when you guys send me theories of my story or pick up on my little nuisances I scatter about! **

**For the person who messaged me, almost all of the grounder's language I use in my story is actually real Trigedasleng (the grounder langague created specifally for the show). I have made some up here and there, but easily 98% of the grounder's language I use is real! Fun fact for ya'll. **

**In this chapter: _hod op_ - stop/wait  
><em>Taim yu drag raun, taim yu ge ban au <em>- those who fall behind, get left behind  
><strong>

**Please continue to message me, review, favorite and follow this story. I'll be back with another update soon! **


	13. Gasping for Air

**Another update already! See, I told you reviews motivate me! **

**So you're getting a warning at the beginning of this chapter today because this one is going to be a little darker than the others, and puts my T rating to good use. It's not overly graphic, in my opinion, but it does explore slightly darker themes.**

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><p>"What are they arguing about?" I asked Indra as I bit into the globe shaped fruit in my hands.<p>

Leaning against a tree a few feet away she glanced over at the group of warriors and rolled her eyes.

"Over who is leading the next hunting party most likely," she answered offhandedly.

"And you're not interested?" I questioned as I took another bite from the fruit, sparing a moment to wipe juice that had escaped my mouth and down my chin with my sleeve. Once I had started to hold my own around the village Indra had started to warm up to me, and I was glad for her company even for as rare as it was. She was smart and relentless, not to mention tough as the nails that decorated her armor. As one of the leaders of the clan she had to be, her position was not one easily gained.

"I have clan issues elsewhere that require my attention," she told me, causing me to look up at her in confusion. I wonder what was going on…

She ignored my silent plea for her to continue and instead turned her attention back to the group of warriors at the edge of the woods. The yelling had stopped and as others took a step back it became clear who had become the victor.

No surprise there, I thought to myself as I watched Jaxon take his place at the head of the hunting party. On the ground two warriors laid wounded, their soft moans of pain the only sound that came from their direction now. That's what they get for being stupid enough to challenge Jaxon in the first place.

I rolled my eyes at the scene but pushed myself up after shoving the last piece of fruit into my mouth. I doubted either of the two men were seriously injured, but as the only official healer nearby I assumed it was my duty to go and check. As I made my way over to the group a few of the warriors I knew nodded in my direction, I returned their greetings as I slipped my way past them.

I knelt down to one of the men clutching his shoulder, I didn't recognize him but I groaned audibly when the other man turned to face me. Delano. I almost considered just leaving him to lay injured, almost. I reset the shoulder of the man who was closest to me and I moved to get closer to Delano, but his harsh glare stopped me.

"I don't need your help," he spat at me. I scoffed slightly, taking in his black eye which was getting darker by the second.

"Leave him on the ground like the roach he is then," Jaxon's voice called out behind me. I turned to face him as I stood back up, but his focus was set on Delano behind me.

"On second thought girl," Delano said, pausing to right himself and dust off any offending dirt. "I have something you can help me with right here."

My eyes widened in shock as he grabbed his crotch and made thrusting movements. The people here were much more open about their sexual relations, but this had to be insulting even by their standards. In an instant the warriors around me had gone silent and Jaxon had moved from behind me. Apparently I was right.

Delano was now pinned against the nearest tree as Jaxon forced his long knife against his throat. Growling, Jaxon's voice dropped dangerously low as he spoke to Delano, who despite his situation looked unaffected. Jaxon must have asked him a question, because after a brief nod from Delano and another threatening glare he dropped the man back to his knees on the dirt.

No one said a word as Jaxon turned and walked out of the group that had gathered around to watch - more warriors that were there originally I noted. He grabbed my elbow as he exited and tugged me along behind him stopping only once we were some distance away from the group and out of earshot.

"You shouldn't have bothered with them," he told me quietly, his voice angry yet only slightly louder than a whisper.

"They were hurt," I explained, confused on why I was being blamed for offering to do my job. It wasn't my fault Delano was a pig.

"They would have been fine," he argued, not losing the edge in his voice.

"His shoulder wasn't going to reset itself," I countered, referencing the first man who had managed not to attack me. He stood there for a moment just looking at me, before sighing and looking back at the group.

"Stay away from him," he warned, turning his stormy eyes back to mine - the anger gone. I wasn't about to tell him that he wasn't the first person to warn me of him.

"Gladly," I told him. I didn't need to be told three times. Seemingly happy that I hadn't argued with him, he nodded in approval.

"Good," he said pausing, before continuing hesitantly, "I will be gone for a few days. Stay in the village, don't do anything stupid."

I scoffed dramatically and pretended to look offended.

"Who me? I would never" I told him, my voice dripping with sarcasm. He rolled his eyes but played along anyways.

"Of course not," he teased. "I must have you confused for the other naive little sky girl with a knack for finding herself in life or death situations."

"She sounds like a handful," I replied cheekily.

"You have no idea," he responded, mostly under his breath. Our banter was interrupted when one of the warriors called for Jaxon and motioned towards the forest. It must be time for them to go…

"Stay safe Cole," he warned seriously, losing his playfulness and returning to the stone-faced lethal warrior mode that I was used to seeing. "I won't be here to save you this time."

"I guess I'll have to find another warrior in shining …. well, er, spiked leather armor to save me," I joked lamely, trying to keep the mood light. Jaxon looked unamused.

Shaking his head slightly he walked off to rejoin the group and lead them off. I suddenly found myself very alone and wondering what I should do. Both Artigas and Penn had joined the hunting party, even Nyko had opted to go for once - saying he would finally have the opportunity to go again now that I could stay behind and tend to the village. All four of them had instantly denied my request to go without even a second thought.

"Stupid macho patriarchal society," I grumbled to myself as I made my way back to the healer's building.

The next few days passed slowly. I mostly kept to myself and busied myself with work: sorting vials of medicine, cleaning and sterilizing tools and whatever other busy work I could find.

It was on the second night that my schedule was interrupted. Waking up well before dawn, I shivered as I brought my blanket up around my body. I cursed myself quietly at having forgotten to bring back my cat-skin blanket home once again. I would still be sleeping comfortably if I had...

Sighing I stood up and changed out of my sleeping clothes that I had bartered herbs for.

"I guess I can go get it now," I muttered to myself as I pulled quarter sleeve deep green dress over my head. Pants were definitely too much effort. Finding my jacket nearby I shrugged that on as well, not bothering to bundle more for just a quick trip. I stretched to pull the kinks out of my muscles, studying the horizon as I did. The full moon was still out, but it wouldn't be much longer until the sun started to edge over the mountains. If I hurried I could still get another hour of sleep or so.

I made my way towards the healer's building, stopping when I noticed something strange. Why is there light on in the windows? I approached the building slower, now confused why someone would be in their at this time of day. If someone was injured they knew where to find me, and with Nyko gone it made no sense for anyone else to be there so early.

I walked quietly into the building, curious to see what was happening. I had my knife in my back pocket of my pants, but didn't grab for it yet. Rounding the doorway I saw a man hunched over the medical supply table sorting hastily through vials he must have grabbed from the nearby shelves. His back was turned to me, all I could make out was his dark black hair in the soft candle light.

"If you're hurt I can help," I called out softly, not wanting to startle the stranger more than I was already going to. The stranger stiffened at the sound of my voice but didn't turn to face me.

"You're obviously hurt," I said, noting how his posture favored one side and his breathing seemed to be slightly labored. "Why don't you let me take a look?"

I had made it about half way across the room before stopping, my blood turning cold as he turned to face me. Of all people, why does it have to be him?

"Delano," I squeaked. He grinned sinisterly at my discomfort.

So much for staying away from him…

"Still want to help little fisa," he taunted as he leaned against the table, his arm grasping his ribs tightly.

"What happened?" I asked, unsure of what to do.

"You were there," he sneered.

I knew Jaxon had been rough on him, but I hadn't realized he had actually been injured at all.

"If it's your ribs, there's not much I can do to help, but wrapping them tightly well help alleviate some discomfort and I can give you an herb for pain," I explained to him, moving toward the far end of the supply table to grab what I needed. I didn't particularly want to be near him, but he was injured and I couldn't bring myself to send him off without treatment. Maybe my help will get him to stop hating me so much…

I grabbed the bandages I needed and moved closer to Delano, reaching around him to grab one of the vials he had dumped on the table. His hand on my wrist stopped me though.

"You think I trust you?" he asked, tightening his grip painfully.

"I'm just trying to help," I replied, trying to pull my arm away from him but his grip was absolute. He just laughed darkly before twisting my arm behind my back and forcing my head against the solid table.

"Like you helped the other day?" he questioned. One of the vials must have shattered when he slammed me forward, I could see small pieces of glass on the table next to my face and I was becoming more aware of a sharp stinging sensation across the side of my face.

"Delano, please," I called out, wanting him to release me. He released my arm, only to spin me roughly to face him - his hand taking a hold on my throat instead. Instantly he lifted me and slammed me against the table, this time I heard the vials of glass break beneath me - I felt them as well, my coat not thick enough to keep all of the shards from embedding into my skin.

"I rather like the sound of you begging me for your life," he said darkly, ignoring my cries. My hands went to his around my neck, trying to pull him away. His grip only tightened and I dug my nails into his arms in response.

My breaths were labored, and I could feel myself starting to lose consciousness. I need to do something, I thought urgently my senses heightening momentarily as adrenaline started to course through my body.

With a burst of energy I pulled my leg up and kicked at his hip as hard as I could manage, his hold weakened but never broke. However, as he leaned back from the blow I managed to bring my legs past his arms and up to my chest, giving me a barrier between him. I kicked my legs out again, aiming for his face or throat or anything I could hit hard enough to break free.

As he fell backward grabbing his own throat, air rushed into my deprived lungs. Finally.

I pushed myself off the table, still slightly disoriented. Out, I need to get out. I started moving toward the door but I didn't make it far. With a rough tug of my ankle I fell to the floor hard and groaned at the contact. Coming up beside me quickly he tangled his hand into my hair, pulling back harshly - my back arching as I screamed in pain.

"Where do you think your going little one?" he growled in my ear. "We're just starting to have fun."

I blinked back tears and blood and my entire body burned from the tension.

I didn't have much time to dwell on it though before Delano flipped me over onto my back and straddled my waist. His extra weight forced the air out of lungs and sent a pain shooting up my spine as I struggled to breathe in.

"I don't understand what they see in you," he muttered, as he grabbed my chin forcefully and turned my head from side to side.

"Fuck …. you," I wheezed at him, glaring harshly at my tormentor. His hand reached back and set my head reeling as he backhanded me angrily.

"Careful what you wish for little one," he said darkly causing me to tense beneath him. My fear escalated higher than I thought possible as I stared at him through my one eye that wasn't blurred by my own blood. He caught my hands in one of his own and dropped the other one to my waist, tugging the material up slowly.

No …. no, no, no, no, no.

My body finally caught up with my mind and I started kicking and screaming with a new energy. Twisting and turning I screamed until my throat was raw. Why was no one coming to help? Couldn't they hear me?

He easily overpowered me, and just grinned wickedly at me as his palm finally met the flesh of my hip bone and gripped it tightly. Getting one of my arms free I swung wildly at his face and was met with a sickening crunch. Cursing he raised his hands to his own face, I used the distraction to use his knees as leverage to pull myself out from underneath him. Crawling away, I didn't even get the change to try to stand up before he pulled me back towards him trapping my legs beneath him and pinning my arms against him as he held me tightly against his chest.

"I never knew you had this in you," he growled into my ear, his voice strained but excited. I struggled against him as hard as I could manage but stopped when I felt his teeth sink into my shoulder. Crying out I arched my head back. He laughed at my pain and braced one of his arms under my chest as he started to raise the fabric of my dress up again. I felt his hand moving up my thigh as if it was fire, as I thrashed against him my head made contact with his own causing him to lean back. Taking the opening I jammed my elbow into his injured ribs causing him to be the one who cried out in pain this time.

Moving forward towards the door again, the sudden effort caused me to cry out as the pain reawakened in my ribs. Hearing me, Delano ignored his injuries and lunged at me once again.

Struggling against each other, we both momentarily paused when we heard people moving about out front of the building. Realizing this was my chance, I started to scream for help but my voice came out raspy and weak. Delano wrapped his hand around my mouth and had a knife at my throat in an instant.

"Scream again and it will be the last thing you do," he whispered into my ear, digging the knife into my skin for emphasis.

"This is what is going to happen," he told me determinedly, his words now rushed as the noise from outside moved closer. "I'll let you live. You'll tell whoever finds you that you were attacked by a man you didn't recognize who was stealing pain medicine. You even breathe my name and I'll kill everyone of your sky people one by one until they stop me - starting with your little stable boy. Do you understand me little one?"

I hesitated thinking over what he had just said, it is so hard to concentrate. I couldn't seem to focus on his words.

"This doesn't require much thought," Delano said harshly, digging the blade in deeper drawing blood this time. "You nod yes or I'll slit your throat."

Nod. I need to nod.

I moved my head slightly, between his hold on me and the knife it was hard to do so without hurting myself even more. Content with the effort he pulled the knife back.

"Good," he responded. "Now don't forget our little deal alright little one?"

Not waiting for a response this time he slammed my head against the floor - spots flooded my vision and I could feel myself slipping.

I groaned when I felt his him breakaway from me, he barely spared a glance back at me as he hobbled out through the door.

Surely someone would come soon. I tried to fight off my fading consciousness, vaguely recognizing that falling asleep or passing out now heightened my chances of going into acoma.

But I could feel my energy fading, my injuries feeling more pronounced as they throbbed across my body. I looked towards the door in one last effort, seeing no one I stopped fighting and let myself fade into the darkness.


	14. Just for the Night

**Jaxon's POV**

"Get the meat to the smoke house and then return home - you all did well this hunt," I told the band of warriors around me. Our hunt had been successful so we returned home early, a small turn of fortune we were all thankful for. Once everyone had moved out I unsaddled my horse, gathering the furs from my kills before handing the reigns to the stable boy.

It happened to be the boy who arrived from the sky with the others. I said nothing to him as I moved past. He took care of the horses well enough, but still spent too much of his time chasing after Cole - a fact that irritated me. He would never be suitable for her, he was much too weak to provide for or protect her.

I set the two furs I had kept for my own on the table in my home. I could use the deer skin to make new supplies, the thick black bear coat on the other hand I had decided to give to Cole - with winter coming she would need more than the cougar skin to stay warm.

The sky people had made great improvements for our clan since they had arrived. Most had seemed to adjust to our way of life quickly, but it was unusual in the way they interacted with each other. They did not have a commander or warriors to look out for their weaker members - and they all insisted on working independently of each other. It was fortunate for them to have joined with our clan, they would be ill prepared for our world if they hadn't.

I thought of Cole momentarily, she found herself in enough trouble even with the clan. The thought of what would happen to her if she was alone was something I pushed out of my mind immediately. My thoughts strayed to her more often than I cared to admit since she had arrived, and I was not blind to the fact that she had caught the attention of others as well. No one had yet to offer claim of her yet - unsure of how the sky people would react - so I knew I had time before I made a choice myself. Until then I could continue to look out for her, give her tokens that would prove I could provide for her, and also make it clear to others that she was not theirs for the taking.

Yes, the bear skin would suit her well I decided laying it to the side.

"Jaxon! Jaxon!" a voice called from outside, breaking me from my thoughts. Stepping out I saw Artigas standing before me breathing heavily. His home was on the other side of the village, what could be so urgent to make him rush here?

Saying nothing I let the young warrior catch his breath.

"You need to come, Nyko needs you. Now!" he wheezed. I studied him for a moment, I had just left the healer not even an hour ago. And if it was so important why did Nyko not just come find me himself?

"It's Cole, she's hurt. Pretty badly. Nyko found her in the healer's building, told me to come find you and some of the others right away," he explained. After he mentioned Cole I was already moving towards the healer's building, catching the last part of his explanation as he yelled it out as I left. I moved as quickly as I could through the village, careful to avoid areas I knew would be busy with people prepping the meat and furs from the hunt. Three days was all it had taken for her to get injured again. She had promised to not do anything stupid. I clenched my fists in irritation.

"Where is she?" I growled as I entered the building. It was empty save for Nyko who was bent over a cot and the boy from the stables earlier. I wondered how he made it here before me, or why he was here in the first place, but as Nyko turned to me I pushed my thoughts aside. I would deal with him later.

It was only when Nyko stood that I realized it was Cole who he was tending to on the cot. Narrowing my eyes I made quick work of the distance between us. My breath caught in my throat as my irritation faded into concern as I looked over her. Her arms and legs were covered in bruises and scratches, her lip was busted and still bleeding, her cheeks black and blue - but the worst injury was the shallow, but long cut that ran from the top of her nose and across her eye stopping at her battered cheek. Who ever did this to her would pay, dearly.

"What happened?" I asked Nyko, my voice colder than I had intended. The healer sighed heavily and shook his head.

"I'm not sure. I came in to check on her and found her unconscious and bleeding out on the floor," he told me, his voice heavy with concern for the little sky girl who had fallen into our lives. "Whatever happened, there was definitely a fight. There's blood all across the room and the injuries on her arms are defensive."

This hadn't been an accident, someone had purposely meant to hurt her. I growled under my breath.

"Her arms are badly bruised, her shoulder was nearly dislocated and she had too many shallow cuts from shattered glass buried in her upper arms, neck, face and back to count," Nyko continued, not waiting for me to respond. "Her cheek bone is shattered, and the cut across her face - most likely from the glass I found - will probably scar… But that's not the most concerning part."

What could be worse, I thought to myself, still unable to look at anything else but Cole. She looked so small laying there.

"When I found her she was passed out on the floor bleeding," Nyko explained slowly, as if searching for the right words. I still didn't respond, he had already mentioned that.

"But when I found her … Cole's dress was pulled up to her waist," he continued. My head snapped towards him, equal parts fearful and furious of what he was implying. "I don't know how far it went, but she has bruises across her ribs and stomach, imprints from a man's hand on her throat, wrists and hip ,and a bite mark on her shoulder deep enough to draw blood."

For a moment all I saw was red. Someone had touched her. Someone had touched Cole... who was under my care...who was mine. I would rip the hands off the man who did this to her, torture him as he tortured her - I would kill him.

Containing my anger, I focused back to the task at hand.

"Do you know who?" I asked Nyko, whose expression told me he was as equally as outraged as I was. He shook his head no in response.

"What do you need for her?" I followed up. Food, medicine, fresh supplies - I would make sure he would get anything he needed for her care.

"I already have Artigas gathering everything I need," he replied. "I had Lucas sort through the remaining of the medical supplies she brought from the sky and have given her what I can to speed up her bones healing and to replenish the blood she lost. I will continue to watch over her to monitor any changes, but all we can do now is wait for her to wake up."

"And find who did this to her," I added darkly. Nyko nodded once in response.

It was long until Artigas returned with the supplies Nyko had requested, with Penn and few other warriors Cole had managed to befriend following closely behind. Nyko explained what had happened, no one took it well - especially Penn who punched the concrete wall after hearing about the hand prints on the more delicate parts of her skin.

The more I thought of her and what had happened the angrier I became. For a moment I almost felt sorry for the man who was responsible for this all, he would pay in ways he never imagined and would regret the very day he was born when I was done with him. But when Cole groaned quietly in pain from her cot, that thought quickly vanished. No, the man responsible deserved what he had coming to him. He deserved death, and I was more than happy to deliver it to him.

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><p><strong>Cole's POV<strong>

I moaned in pain as I opened my eyes. It was too bright. I tried to turn my head but that only sent another course of throbbing pain through my head. What happened?

"Cole?' a voice called out softly from somewhere to my left. "Cole can you hear me?"

I tried to respond, to let them know I could but when I attempted to talk nothing came out - but my throat burned from the effort. God, why is everything so painful?

My eyes finally adjusted to the light, but my vision remained slightly hazy. Looking over, careful not to move my head again I found Lucas kneeling next to me, a concerned look etched across his face. I tried to smile at him but even that hurt.

"Nyko, I think she's awake," Lucas called out, before quickly being replaced in my line of sight by the native healer. Nyko's expression was also marked with concern, which confused me. Why were they looking at me like that?

I tried to remember what could have happened to worry them but my mind was hazy. I could recall the hunting party leaving, working while they were gone and that was it. Why couldn't I remember anything after that?

"You back with us Cole?" Nyko asked, his voice soft and low. I nodded slightly, careful not to move quickly.

"Good," he smiled softly, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Here, drink this. You must be thirsty."

Now that he mentioned it, I was. Nyko brought the canteen to my lips and let me drink slowly, pausing every few second to let me swallow. My throat felt like it was on fire, but the cool water helped sooth it slightly.

"Thank you," I managed to whisper to him, my voice rough and raspy. It didn't even sound like me…

I braced my hands on the cot wanting to sit up, but the moment I started to move Nyko stopped me.

"You're in no condition to move right now Cole," he told me. I just sent him a confused look, or what I thought was a confused look … I couldn't really feel anything but pain in my face. The longer I was awake, the more everything started to hurt.

Surely sitting up couldn't hurt though? I ignored Nyko and tried again, only to find him glaring at me with a hand firmly pressed against my shoulder.

"Now who's the stubborn one?" a voice called from the other side of me. Penn's light tone made me smile. Giving up on moving I took a moment to focus my vision on the three figures next to me - Penn, Artigas and Jaxon. I was glad to see them.

"How are you feeling?" Lucas asked from the other side of me, standing near Nyko once again.

"Felt better," I admitted, groaning at the sound of my voice. I sounded awful.

"Obviously," I heard Artigas mumble next to me, glaring at Lucas.

"What …. what happened?" I asked, having to pause to take another sip of water before I could talk. Everyone around me was quiet.

"We were hoping you would tell us," Nyko said quietly. I furrowed my brow as I tried to think about the last things I remembered. I was starting to see glimpses of things here and there, but it mostly just a blur and I couldn't put all the pieces together.

"I … I don't remember," I told them, earning a deep sigh from the healer and a dark look from Jaxon. After a moment Nyko told me of how he found me and off the different markings and injuries I had sustained. That explained the pain, but not why I was lying here in the first place. I hadn't noticed, but at some point I had started crying, I was only aware of it after Penn knelt down next to me.

"No crying Cole," he said, his voice uncharacteristically serious as he grabbed my hand softly. "We'll find who did this to you. You're going to be okay now."

I didn't say anything, just looked away ashamed. How could I always be so weak?

"Are you hungry?" Lucas asked, changing the subject hesitantly. "You've been out for a few days, you must be at least a little bit."

A few days?! That must be why my head hurts so badly, if it I was hit hard enough it would be possible to put me into an acoma - it would also explain why I couldn't remember anything yet... My head reeled as I tried to piece together my injuries, maybe I should just focus on food...

"My mom made some soup for you, I'll go put it over the fire," Artigas volunteered, moving out of my line of vision. Soup did sound good.

"I have patrol, but I'll stop by again soon alright?" Penn said softly. "No crying while I'm gone, and if any of these idiots give you a hard time let me know, I'll beat them up for you."

I smiled slightly, wincing as the cut on my lip pulled apart. Leave it to Penn to crack jokes.

"Why they're getting food for you, you should try to take some of these," Lucas said, holding out a variety of pills in his hand. "It will help with the pain, when you were unconscious we couldn't give you anything - we weren't sure how you would react."

That made sense I guess. And at this point I would be willing to fight one of those giant cougars for some pain relievers. I winced as I tried to readjust myself on the cot - maybe I would start with the pills and fight the cougar later.

Lucas handed the pills to Nyko two by two, explaining which each one was to the healer as he helped me take sips of the water to swallow them. I instantly started to feel the pain ebb away slowly. The sharp aches now nothing more than a dull throb - that I could handle.

"Do you want some bread with the soup as well?" Artigas asked holding up a basket of bread from Botts. I would recognize that smell anywhere. I nodded slowly in response.

"You definitely won't have to worry about supplies any time soon," Lucas said confusing me. "Botts brought you bread, a group of women dropped off a few sets of new clothes - it's been non-stop. People have brought you meat, blankets, herbs, flowers, and whatever else you could think of. Its been surprisingly overwhelming."

People have brought things for me?

"Why is surprising that people care about her?" Jaxon asked harshly. He had been so quiet I had almost forgotten he was here.

"I just hadn't realized she had made so many friends I guess," Lucas explained lamely. I could feel Jaxon and Nyko tense next to me, but I didn't put much weight into Lucas's comments. I understood what he meant, I would have never expected it either.

"Goes to show that there are a lot of things you haven't realized yet," Jaxon responded, his voice still low and accusing. Lucas bristled at the comment and was about to defend himself before Artigas stepped forward with a bowl of food.

"She's been sleeping for days and probably feels like shit, you guys really think that she wants to listen to you two bicker right now?" Artigas scolded as he handed the soup to Nyko. Both Jaxon's and Lucas' expressions softened.

The soup was heavenly, the warm broth was just what my body needed. In combination with the drugs and the food, I felt a hundred times better than I had when I woke up.

"That was exactly what I needed," I told the men around me. "Tell your mother I said thank you Artigas."

He just nodded and smiled. Nyko had told me to rest, much to my disdain, and pulled Jaxon and Artigas away from me. I was used to being on the other side of the bed, the one taking care of others, not the one being taken care of- it was unsettling. I wanted nothing more than to get up and act as if nothing was wrong, but the low throbbing across my body told me that wasn't going to happen.

I groaned uncomfortably. If I was going to be forced to stay in bed I at least wanted to sleep in a better position. I must have made a pained noise because in an instant Jaxon was crouching down next to me asking me what was wrong quietly.

"Can you help…" I paused, suddenly embarrassed to be asking for help so pathetically. He just waited patiently for me to finish, ready to agree to whatever I asked.

"Can you help me turn over?" I asked finally. "I … I'm not very comfortable like this."

Jaxon narrowed his eyes, running them quickly over my body. I knew he was probably just assessing how badly I was hurt and if it would be alright to move me, but his gaze made me blush anyways.

Carefully he leaned forward, wrapping one of his arms around my legs gently and using the other to brace my back. With his help I was able to turn on my side to face him. The jostling ignited some pain in my ribs, but the pressure against them as I settled into position helped alleviate it quickly.

I Ignored the pain in my shoulder as I laid my head on my arm, only for the first time noticing the plethora of cuts and bruises on my arm. I frowned.

"They will heal," Jaxon reassured me, his hand still resting on my hip softly. His thumb started to rub small circles against the fabric of my clothes. It felt good until he unintentionally brushed up against sore spot. I flinched and his hands immediately retracted, closing my eyes I waited for the pain to pass.

The small touch had sent a spark up my spine, for a moment I could almost feel his hands burn as they ran up my thigh, as they gripped my waist tightly holding me to him, and as hit bit into my shoulder. Panicked my eyes shot open, Jaxon was still kneeling next to me, his face stoic but his eyes filled with worry. I tried to take deep breaths to even out my breathing again. It wasn't Jaxon, he wouldn't ever hurt me.

Absently I reached up my hand to touch the back of my shoulder, where the phantom pain had been. I whimpered when I felt the indention of teeth in my skin - that flashback had been real.

"I'm sorry," I whispered sadly to Jaxon. I hadn't meant for him to pull away, this wasn't his fault.

"Don't apologize," he replied, eyes darkening as he watched me trace over the mark on my shoulder. He grabbed my hand gently, pulling it away from the bite.

"It will heal," he promised. Sighing, I nodded in response. I knew he was right, but right now I just felt violated and broken.

I wasn't cut out for this world, maybe my repeated injuries was the universe telling me to die already. Maybe I should, it would be easier if I was dead…

"Don't ever say that again," Jaxon growled harshly. I hadn't mean to voice my thoughts out loud, I wasn't even sure if I meant it…

"Don't even think that," he continued, gripping my hand a little harder.

"I'm sorry," I muttered. "And I'm sorry for breaking my promise, I'm sorry for doing something stupid again and making you all worry."

"This is not your fault Cole," Jaxon told me, cradling my hand closer to his chest. He leaned forward and rested his forehead against the top of my head.

"I'm sorry as well," he whispered in my ear so only I could hear. "I'm sorry I left you alone, and that I couldn't protect you."

I looked up at him sadly, "If this isn't my fault, then it doesn't get to be yours either. There's nothing you could have done."

He sighed and shook his head, standing back up to his full height.

"Rest now Cole, you're safe again," he told me before moving back towards Nyko in the middle of the room. My vision had stabilized I noticed, everything wasn't as blurry. At least that was a small step in the right direction.

I woke up a few hours later to voices whispering harshly from behind me.

"What are you doing here?" I heard Artigas ask, his voice low and demanding.

"We wanted to bring some meat by for the girl, it's some of the best cuts from the hunt," a voice explained. I didn't immediately recognize who it was, but their voice alone was enough to send a shiver down my spine.

"Put on the table and then leave, Jaxon and Nyko will not be happy that you are here," Artigas warned.

"Speaking of the healer, isn't that him calling for you now?" the voice questioned, his tone sinister.

"He can wait," Artigas responded without missing a beat. I could hear a voice in the distance yell for Artigas again though.

"Doesn't sound like it," the unknown man pointed out. Artigas sighed.

"Be gone by the time I get back, understand?" He phrased it like a question, but there was no room for disagreement in his tone.

"Understood," the man responded as he moved further into the room. I could hear someone dropping supplies onto the table and I hoped that whoever it was would think I was still asleep and leave.

"Stack them up boys and I'll meet you back out front in a moment, I want to check on the little sky girl," the voice from before commanded. I heard other grunts in response and it was quickly just me and the unknown man left in the building.

I kept my eyes closed, focusing on keeping my breathing spaced out and even so he wouldn't know I was awake.

"You up little one?" the man's voice questioned from beside me.

Little one? Why did that sound so familiar? … Why did that give me the chills?

"Open your eyes girl, I know you're awake," he commanded. Scared, I opened my eyes slowly.

Delano. My blood ran cold, a burst of terror ran through my body just at the sight of him. In seconds the memories from the incident came flooding back. It was him. He was the one I fought with ... He was the one who hurt me. And I was all alone with him again.

"It's good to see you again too little one," he laughed. His hand reached out to grab my chin as he studied me for a moment.

"I really did a number on you didn't I?" he asked almost proudly. Disgusted I yanked my head away from him, ignoring how bad it hurt to do so.

"Now now, none of that," he said as he pushed me onto my back and leaned against one knee on my cot. Grabbing my jaw, just above my throat he forced me to look at him again. How had he been able to heal so quickly? He looked fine, slightly bruised, but that was all. The very thought that he got off so lightly while I was stuck in a cot barely able to move infuriated me, but as he applied more pressure my anger turned into panic.

"You remember our little deal right?" he asked, his eyes dark with excitement. This was just one sick game to him.

"You tell anyone it was me and I'll kill off your sky people one by one," he reminded, grinning down at me. "And if Jaxon comes, or Nyko, or Penn, or any of the other warriors you have have disillusioned - I'll kill them too. Understand?"

When I didn't immediately answer his grip on my jaw tightened causing me to wince.

"I understand," I conceded quietly. I wouldn't be responsible for my friends dying. I couldn't be.

"Good girl," he responded sweetly, leaning down to bury his face in my neck close to where he had bitten me days before.

"Submission suits you," he breathed heavily into my ear, nuzzling my neck again before pushing off me.

I felt sick as I turned my head away from him.

"I'll be seeing you little one, of that I'm sure," he warned before he left. As soon as I couldn't hear his footsteps any longer I broke down. I could feel my body shaking as I sobbed uncontrollably.

How could I have let this happen? How could I be so weak?

"Cole?" Nyko called out, seeing me shaking as he walked into the building with Artigas and Jaxon close behind. They had been with me almost constantly, and I found myself both cursing them for leaving me alone once again and feeling horrible that they had been stuck with me. I just cried harder.

I started thrashing on the cot, not caring how much it hurt or that I was reopening my wounds. All I could think about was Delano, how his hands felt against me, how sick it made me feel. I could still hear his voice repeating over and over in my head.

Why did I deserve this? Why was this happening to me?!

"Cole you need to calm down, breath," Nyko commanded as he sat on my cot taking my flailing arms in his hands as gently as he could. I struggled against him, he didn't understand. He couldn't hear him in my head.

"What's happening?" I thought I heard Artigas ask, but his voice sounded miles away.

"I think she's remembering," Nyko responded, grunting softly as I twisted and turned to get away from his hold. If only he knew just how much I remembered.

"Give her to me," Jaxon demanded as he sat down on the other side of me. Nyko let go of my arms slowly. Once free I pushed myself into a sitting position hurriedly, my body screamed in protest but I paid it no mind.

Jaxon seeing his chance grabbed my legs and pulled me towards him, in a second I found myself sitting in his lap, his hands easily catching mine as I swung half hazardly at him. His grip was firm, making it clear I wasn't going anywhere.

"Cole stop," he said, his tone strong and demanding. "Stop and look at me."

I didn't listen, just continued to fight him.

"Look at me Cole," he demanded, shouting at me this time. His voice startled me, everyone had been speaking so soft and gently to me since I had woken up. I stopped thrashing, my wrists still held gently in his hands as I raised my eyes to his.

"You're okay now," he told me slowly, never breaking eye contact. "We're here … I'm here."

I looked down nervously.

"But you left again," I muttered, barely loud enough for him to hear. He sighed and pulled me closer, his hands leaving my wrists and pulling me closer to his chest.

"That was a mistake. I won't leave you again," he whispered into my ear. Tears were still rolling down my face, but I had calmed down now. I buried my hands underneath Jaxon's jacket for warmth and rested my head on his chest.

He was here now, Delano wouldn't dare come near me.

Jaxon repositioned himself so he was leaning against the wall next to my cot, still cradling me in his arms. He never made a move to let me go, and I was grateful. Sniffling, I nuzzled my head against him and tried to pull myself closer.

"I've got you," he whispered, his hands tightening slightly on my waist.

"Drink this Cole," Nyko suggested as he moved a canteen towards me. I hesitated, not wanting to let go of Jaxon, scared that if I did they would leave again and Delano might return. Nyko just waited patiently, motioning for me to take it again. I gripped Jaxon's shirt tighter with one hand, before reaching out my other to grab the water. After a few sips Nyko handed me a vial of crushed herbs and water. I scrunched my nose.

I shook my head at him, I knew what that was and it tasted awful. Nyko chuckled slightly before telling me to just drink it and get it over with. Groaning I did as he said, making a face as the sour juice assaulted my taste buds.

"That will help you sleep," he explained, even though I was already familiar with the natural tranquilizer.

"Do you remember anything about who did this to you Cole," Nyko asked hesitantly. I tensed.

What did I tell them? What could I tell them?

"I remember … I remember what happened," I responded honestly, my voice barely above a whisper. "But I still can't see his face. I can feel him, I can remember fighting against him … but I can't remember who he was."

I felt sick to my stomach lying to the men who had spent so much time fussing over me and taking care of me. But it's in their best interest I argued internally. It's better if they don't know. Safer.

Nyko just nodded sadly, and I felt Jaxon's arms tense slightly. I sighed. It was better this way.

"That's alright Cole," Nyko told me gently before moving away from us.

My eyes started to feel heavy as the drug started to take affect. I was going to suggest that Jaxon help me lay down, so he wouldn't be stuck with me. But the thought of him leaving if only for a second nearly sent me into another panic attack. I wrapped my arms around him again, he didn't protest or complain in the slightest.

Tomorrow I would sleep by myself I argued. But tonight, tonight I needed Jaxon. I needed him to be there next to me, to keep the demons at bay. I cuddled into him subconsciously and I felt him rest his head against mine - it seemed for tonight, he was comfortable enough to do that for me. I smiled against his chest and let sleep take me.

* * *

><p><strong>So a little different chapter style here. I probably won't use other character's POV very often, but it seemed to fit well with this chapter. What did you think? All of your reviews have been amazing so far! I love hearing what you guys have to say. <strong>

**To answer a few frequent questions I have gotten so far:  
><strong>**This story _will_ eventually run back into the 100 group, but not for a while. And even when that does happen this is still going to be MY story, so the events will be from Cole's perspective and not necessarily in line with everything that's happening in the show. Because this story is mine, so I can do that! Haha. **

**This chapter was a pivotal point in Jaxon's and Cole's relationship, as some may have noticed, and I've already had a few messages asking how far I intend to take them and if there will be a change in rating later in the story. To be honest I'm still playing with that idea. I could totally make this M rated if necessary, but just as easily leave the steamy stuff aside. _Thoughts/opinions readers?_**


	15. Just Another Day

"It's good to see you up and moving Cole," a voice called from the doorway. Tugging the sweater over my head carefully I turned and smiled at Lucas.

"It's good to be able to," I admitted. Nyko had kept me on bed rest for almost a week and a half, and my muscles complained of the treatment now. I straightened out the sweater, it was dark green and hung loosely on my frame - it was new to me, a gift from one of the weavers and as I rubbed my hands against the soft material I made a mental note to find her and thank her later - and then possibly beg for more. We didn't have anything this comfortable back on the Arc.

"Did Jaxon let you in?" I asked, pausing from my thoughts. Jaxon had been as bad as Nyko for the past couple weeks, screening who could come in and see me and when, watching over me and making sure I wasn't moving around too much, and making sure my every need was met. It was sweet in a way - and always reassuring to have him near when I woke up in night sweats - but as my body started to mend their constant mothering was becoming irritating.

"Uhm, he may or may not have seen me come in … he was a little distracted talking to Nyko," Lucas admitted, looking away bashfully. Lucas had been one, among many others, who had received only limited visiting time while I was bed ridden. I laughed slightly at the mental picture of him tiptoeing around Jaxon, and for a moment was sort of impressed that he had managed it.

"Well I'm glad you're here anyways," I told him. A familiar face helped put me at ease. Even though my body was managing to heal quickly, I still had panic attacks if I was left alone for too long and I sometimes woke up screaming in the middle of the night. I pushed those thoughts from my mind though as I decided to focus on Lucas and the task at hand.

"Have you eaten yet?" I asked Lucas, who was still standing by the doorway awkwardly. He shook his head no and I shot him another smile.

"Good," I replied. "Eat this."

I tossed him an orange oblong fruit and grabbed another for myself. It was also a gift brought over while I was healing, and had quickly became one of my favorite foods.

"This is really good," Lucas mumbled, his mouth still full.

"I know right?" I laughed back, groaning slightly as my still bruised ribs throbbed.

"So, this is the most active I've seen you in weeks," Lucas said, taking another bite of the fruit. "Planning your great escape?"

I laughed slightly, careful to mind my ribs this time. I understood what he meant, looking down at my sweater, dark jeans and combat boots, today was the first day I had managed to put on real clothes - other than the ones I changed into to lounge in only to stay comfortable and clean.

"Nyko and Jaxon said they have a surprise for me," I told him, as I swallowed the last bite of food. "They just told me to get dressed and that they would be waiting outside."

"This would explain why it is taking you so long," Nyko drawled from the doorway, standing next to Jaxon. Both men towering only slightly behind Lucas who had turned to face them guiltily.

"What are you doing here?" Jaxon questioned Lucas, his voice coming out in a growl.

"He came to see me," I voiced quietly, slightly intimidated by the awkward stare down going on between my three friends.

"We were worried when you were taking so long," Nyko explained. "Next time, you should make yourself known boy and not sneak around."

"I wasn't sneaking," Lucas exclaimed. Both Nyko and Jaxon hardened their glares. I just rolled my eyes - I would never understand men.

"So … you said you had a surprise?" I asked cautiously. Nyko was the first to give way and turn his attention back towards me.

"Yes," he replied. "We should get going so we aren't late."

"Late for what?" I asked curiously, Nyko was never in a rush for anything. I wonder what they have planned?

"I'll see you later?" I asked hopefully, stopping next to him for a moment. Lucas smiled at me and nodded.

"Lets go," Jaxon growled as he turned to walk out of the healer's building. Nyko waited until I exited before following behind me. I stopped for a moment once I got outside, it had been weeks since I had been out in the fresh air. Taking a deep breath I sighed contently, making both men stop and look at me. I blushed slightly before falling back in line behind them.

"So where exactly are we going?" I asked. Both men made a noncommittal sound and kept moving. Well that was helpful.

We kept walking in silence for another ten minutes or so, stopping once we reached one of the outer homes. I didn't recognize the area.

Jaxon stopped at one of the homes and called out something to the person I presumed I was inside. A moment later a woman came out and greeted us.

"Cole, this is Keller," Nyko introduced. "Keller, this is Cole. Our friend we told you about."

I looked at him questioningly, what did he tell her?

"I've heard much about the sky people, and much about you," Keller said, her voice soft yet strong. Her accent more similar to Jaxon's than Nyko's. "It is nice to finally meet you."

I nodded and smiled at her, hoping that I came off as friendly. I found the women to be far more intimidating than the men here on Earth…

Looking at Keller it was clear she wasn't a warrior. She was about my height, her dark black hair was pulled away from her face but left down - a distinct difference from the warriors who wore their hair tied up - and she had soft hazel eyes. No, definitely not a warrior. But like many of the others I saw, she had a red tattoo on her arm - an asymmetrical design that mostly covered by her top. She must be from Jaxon's clan..

"Please, come inside," she offered, motioning into her home and breaking me from my thoughts.

"We will be leaving Cole with you, we think it will be better if we are not here," Nyko explained. Fear shot through me. What did they mean they weren't staying? They couldn't just leave me with this woman! I had just barely met her!

"What?" I asked, my voice revealing my inner panic. Jaxon turned towards me, lowering his eyes to mine.

"You will be safe here Cole, we will be back in a few hours," he explained. I just shook my head wordlessly.

"Would I put you in danger?" he asked, moving closer to me. He was waiting for my answer I realized after a moment. I shook my head slowly.

"Would Nyko?" he asked again. I shook my head.

"Then go. Trust us," he told me before moving from in front of me. Keller looked at me hesitantly and offered me her hand. I spared another glance at Nyko and Jaxon before hesitantly placing my hand in hers.

"Come, I have hot tea," she told me, pulling me gently behind her into her home. I already regretted this.

Her home was much larger than mine, I noticed right away trying to take in as much of my surroundings as possible to avoid conversation. She led me to a short table and motioning for me to sit down on the furs surrounding it. They were elk and boar I noted. Not nearly as soft as my cougar-skin or bear-skin I had back home - back where I should be right now.

"Don't be mad at them," Keller told me as she set a metal cup down in front of me. I watched the steam float from the cup, choosing not to respond.

"They are just worried about you … after what happened" she continued.

So she knew. That's why she was tiptoeing around me.

"I'm fine," I grunted at her. It was true enough. My cheek had healed, the cuts and scrapes were just remnants and scabs now.

"Jaxon says you wake up screaming in the middle of the night," she explained softly. I looked up to her and narrowed my eyes - he had no right to tell that to a stranger.

"I don't want to talk about it," I growled. What did she know.

"They said that too," she replied. "It would help if you talked about it, instead of keeping it bottled up."

I groaned audibly, "What are you? My shrink?"

She looked at me confused for a moment.

"What's a shrink?" she asked, taking a sip of her tea. I just huffed irritated in response.

"Why don't you want to talk about it?" she prodded.

"I just don't," I told her fully irritated now.

"You trust them though - Nyko and Jaxon that is?" she questioned. I nodded immediately. Of course I did.

"They wouldn't understand," I admitted, not sure why I was even bothering to tell her in the first place. "I can't tell them."

"Then tell me," she offered. I shook my head.

"You wouldn't understand either," I replied, playing with the cup of tea in my hand.

"I think I would," Keller said, her voice even softer than normal. "Probably better than you would think."

I looked up at her. What did she mean?

"Three years ago a clan from the south came to join us - it was a harvest moon so we prepared a feast and a bonfire to celebrate," Keller explained slowly, her eyes glancing down to stare at the table. "There was a lot of food and drink to go around, and after the moon passed its peak everyone started to return home. On my way back I ran into one of the visiting warriors … I tried to fight him … I couldn't."

I inhaled sharply, understanding how this story ended. My heart suddenly felt heavy.

"I had nightmares for months. Nyko says you remind him of me after what happened, he took care of me too" she continued, not waiting for me to comment. "So I know how you feel. And I know that ignoring it, pretending it never happened doesn't make it go away, and it doesn't make it better."

I shook my head softly. She was better than me, stronger than me. I hadn't been what she was put through. I instantly felt selfish for my behavior towards her.

"I wasn't … I mean he touched me, but not like that. He didn't get that far," I tried to explain, my voice shaky.

"Good," she replied honestly, sparing a small smile.

"What happened to him?" I asked hesitantly, not sure how to broach the topic. Her smile faltered for a second.

"His clan left the next morning, we never saw them again," she said. "I don't know what became of him."

I took a sip of the tea she had set down earlier, unsure of what to say. I felt angry at myself, and I felt angry for her, for never getting retribution.

"Cole, the punishment for what happened to me, and for what happened to you is death," she told me. "You have a chance to have what I was denied - closure."

I understood what she meant, but it wasn't that simple. It wasn't just my life on the line, it was my peoples, it was my friends.

"I don't remember who it was," I told her, repeating the same lie I had told everyone around me for the past week.

She sighed and shook her head, "I don't believe you. You don't forget a face like that, you don't forget the person who does something so horrible to you."

I shuddered, my skin getting goosebumps beneath my sweater.

"You can tell me," she encouraged gently. "Nothing will happen to you, he can't hurt you anymore."

If only she knew it wasn't myself I was worried about.

"I don't remember," I repeated unconvincingly.

"Cole…" she started before I interrupted.

"I can't tell you," I exclaimed, my voice rising in anger. "I can't tell anyone."

"Oh Cole," she sighed before moving over to sit next to me. She pulled me into her as I felt tears falling down my cheeks. I didn't scream or wail, I just allowed myself to cry and opened the floodgates to all the feelings I had been trying so hard to repress. Keller just sat next to me, letting me have my time, gently rubbing my back.

"You can't let him get to you Cole," she whispered after a while. "You can't let him win."

I pulled back from Keller, wiping my eyes in the process. I hated how weak I felt. I hated how scared I had become. I hated how I flinched when someone tried to touch me. I hated how I woke up dripping in sweat, crying, and reliving the fight and the threats over and over. I hated that he had such a control over me… I hated that he had scarred me.

Hesitantly I reached my hand up to my face, running my fingertips over the scar that ran from the top of my nose across my eye. Nyko said there was nothing he could do about the scarring. He tried to reassure me that it was light, and when it was fully healed that it would be barely noticeable. But I hated it. I hated what it reminded me of, and I hated Delano for causing it. I lowered my hand and turned away ashamed.

"Never be ashamed of your scars Cole," Keller told me firmly, taking my hands in hers. "They are a reminder that you survived. That you were stronger than what tried to hurt you. They are your badges of courage, and they are beautiful."

Beautiful was the last thing that I felt. But Keller's calm, reassuring words helped calm me down. I told her quietly about what had happened, in more detail than I had used when retelling the story to Jaxon or Nyko. I was careful to leave out Delano's name, but aside from that I told her all the rest.

"I do feel better," I admitted, taking a sip of tea. Keller just smiled at me knowingly. For the next hour we talked about my life so far on Earth, the difference from space and any other topic that came up. I was laughing hysterically with her over a story she had told me about one of the others form the Arc when Jaxon and Nyko returned.

I was slightly surprised when I turned around to greet them to see that they had someone else with them. Neither Nyko or Jaxon had a child that I was aware of … I must have looked confused because Nyko took one look at me examining Jaxon holding the child and burst out laughing - an unusual sound for the typically serious healer.

Jaxon just ignored him and put the young squirming boy down.

"_Nomon_," the little boy cried out, wobbling over to Keller. I turned my gaze to her, watching her lovingly interact with the little boy. That must be her son, I thought before reason started to kick in. He could only be around two, but that would mean…. that he was a result of her attack.

"Scars can be beautiful Cole, remember that," she told me, obviously figuring out that I had done the math. Picking up the little boy she turned him to face me.

"This is Cole, _nomon's_ new friend," she explained in a gentle tone. "Cole, this is Lyndon. My son."

I smiled and scrunched my face up at Lyndon causing him to burst out into a fit of giggles, causing me and Keller to laugh as well.

I turned back to the men behind us who were both slightly smiling, though I knew they would never admit it. Soon after, I found myself saying goodbye to Keller and Lyndon, who had attached himself to my side once he deemed me worthy enough. He was going to be a handful for Keller when he got older. I promised I would be back soon and exited her home with Jaxon and Nyko in tow.

"It's good to see you smiling again," Nyko commented as we walked along one of the village's paths. I didn't respond, but kept the smile on my face. I was finally starting to feel alright again. It wasn't long until I realized we were in front of the stables, shooting the men next to me a look I turned to face them.

"What are we doing here?" I asked, before cheekily adding, "Another surprise?"

"I need a few more supplies for our stock," Nyko explained, telling us that he was going to go meet with the farmers and would be back shortly.

"Is that Lucas?" I asked excitedly as I moved over towards one of the corrals. After Nyko left, me and Jaxon walked around aimlessly - well I walked and he followed - until we got to the open fields where people were riding. Sure enough Lucas was on one of the horses in the middle of the pen.

Standing on the lowest rung of the railing I leaned against it as I watched Lucas try to stay seated on the horse.

"Idiot," Jaxon muttered as he leaned against the railing next to me. I just rolled my eyes and nudged him playfully.

"Not all of us are born with the innate ability to be great at everything," I teased. A moment later Lucas went flying from the back of the horse, but unlike the other times he didn't get up right away. Rolling on the floor and moaning, he was gripping his arm while trying to avoid the falling hoofs of the bucking horse around him.

"Lucas!" I screamed as I watched in horror. Jaxon was quick to move next to me, jumping into the corral along with some others who had been nearby as well, trying to distract the raging horse. Once the horse was led away, I ducked underneath the railing and made my way towards Lucas.

"It's my arm, I think it's broken," he wailed as I knelt down next to him. I nodded solemnly after looking him over, the bone was sticking out of his skin - the fracture would have to be reset and immobilized. Good thing Nyko was picking up those extra herbs.

I helped tie Lucas' jacket into a makeshift sling and led him along the path back to the healer's building. After getting him settled I stepped outside to get some fresh air - it was good to be back to treating people, rather than being treated I mused. But I couldn't help but wonder if everyday was going to be always so excitement packed - after the past month of so I could do with some normality.

"Shame how accidents happen, isn't it little one?" a voice taunted from beside me. Turning, I froze seeing Delano leaning against a tree not ten feet from me. How had I not noticed him before?

I held my ground, remembering what Keller had said to me earlier. To not let him win.

"It was an accident and nothing more, I saw him fall," I told him, keeping my voice tight so he wouldn't hear the panic that was spreading through my body.

"Of course, of course," he laughed. "Strange coincidence I'm sure."

I growled under my breath. Nyko had made the comment that the horse Lucas had been riding was always very tame, that bucking was strange behavior for it. But how could Delano have controlled the horse?

"What did you do?" I asked, turning to face him fully, my voice low and tense.

"A nail in the hoof is an awfully irritating thing," he mused. "But nothing you could prove now."

That bastard. I could feel my blood boiling, but before I had a chance to say anything else he continued.

"I saw that you had a little chat with Keller earlier," he said, his voice turning serious. "Remember our deal little one, it would be a shame if something was to happen to that little boy."

"I didn't tell her anything," I replied, my voice far from neutral. How dare he threaten Keller or Lyndon, they were innocents in this!

"Keep it that way, or another accident might happen, you never know," he replied. "Oh, tell the stable boy I heard what happened and send my regards, we're all very worried about him."

His tone was insincere, but I realized why he had switched as Jaxon came to stand next to me.

"Delano," Jaxon greeted, his eyes narrowed and suspicious.

"Jaxon," Delano answered, before nodding at me and turning to leave.

"I thought I told you to stay away from him," Jaxon growled after Delano was out of earshot.

"I'm trying to, he has a funny habit of showing up uninvited," I explained, trying to not let my voice reveal my true feelings. Jaxon just grunted in response. He turned to go back inside, presumably expecting me to follow him, but I reached out and grabbed his hand to stop him.

"Thank you, for today. For introducing me to Keller," I told him softly, dropping his hand as he turned back to me. He nodded in reply.

"It helped talking to her," I told him. "I forgot that feeling of being able to have that one person you tell anything to. And she gives good advice, I think we are going to get along well."

"Good," Jaxon replied, pausing for a moment. "You know that you could tell …. never mind."

I laughed gently, smiling at suddenly bashful warrior in front of me.

"I trust you and Nyko with my life," I told him. "I don't know what I would do without you, but there are some things that are better shared and understood between women."

"Understandable," he conceded, regaining his composure. Before we turned back into the building, I caught my reflection in one of the windows. Pausing again I moved closer.

My hair was gathered to one side, the braids Nyko had done for me a month ago still in tact. My face looked sharper than I remembered it from the Arc, my cheekbones more pronounced and my skin was darker. I sighed running my hands over the scar across my face again.

"Scars are a reminder that you are a survivor, do not be ashamed," Jaxon told me quietly, standing closely behind me looking over my shoulder into my reflection as well.

"Keller told me the same thing sort of," I admitted, dropping my hand and holding my head a little higher. "She told me that our scars are what makes us beautiful."

Locking eyes with my reflection, Jaxon nodded.

"She was right."

I felt my cheeks redden as I turned away from the window. Tilting my head towards Jaxon, it was only then I realized he was just a matter of inches away from me. His eyes locked with mine, sparing only a glance down at my lips. It was as if we were moving in slow motion before Nyko's voice from the doorway pulled us back to reality.

"Did you find Cole?" the healer's voice bellowed from the doorway. "I need her to help reset this boy's arm."

I just laughed awkwardly, stepping away from Jaxon who looked mildly annoyed now.

"Come," I told him, walking towards the doorway. "Duty calls."

* * *

><p><strong>Again, thank you for all your reviews! They are always wonderful and incredibly helpful as I continue to develop this story. I incorporated some of your suggestions into this story, and will continue to do so as the story progresses - so continue to review and message me!<strong>

**In this chapter _nonma_ means mother. Again, I try to keep the grounder language as accurate as possible and therefore is definitely not mine to claim.**

**I did have a few readers ask what famous people I would relate to my characters for a visual and I had to stop and do some searching to come up with a good answer. I have a pretty set idea of what all my characters look like, but they aren't based off just one person so it was difficult for me to find one thing that full encompassed what I thought my characters should be. But this is the closest I got, so I hope this is able to help some of you who like photo visuals and/pr googling things. =]**

**Cole - The closest picture I'm happy with for now is Scarlett Johansson playing N****atasha Romanoff in the Avengers (longer hair and less spandex). If you go a step further and look at Sarah Manning from Orphan Black, that's how I picture Cole's hair style to look like, keeping the dark brown-reddish copper tones of Scar-Jo. **

**Jaxon - This was way harder, but I'm thinking along the lines of Vin Diesel (I know, bear with me here) in The Last Witch Hunter, minus the beard and slightly more tribal looking. If that makes any sense at all.**

**Lucas - I picture more like Dylan O'Brien, maybe a tad older with darker hair.**

**As far as all the other characters: Nyko, Artigas, Penn and Delano all are existing characters of the 100 franchise and I'm using ... er... borrowing their character adaptations. Minus Delano's injury (spoilers?!). If you find any other pictures that you think would fit the characters let me know! I would be interested to see what ya'll come up with! **


	16. 0 to 100, Real Quick

"What about this Keller?" I asked as I stepped out in a green tarp dress. She paused, taking a moment to look me up and down before shaking her head.

"Try the teal one," she suggested, returning to sewing the last bit of feathers to a dress she had already chosen. I groaned, this was the sixth dress she had convinced me to try.

"Could I just, maybe not go?" I pleaded hopefully. The glare from Keller told me that wasn't an option though. Tonight was the celebration of some important anniversary to the clan, something about defeating mountain men for territory and reapers - Nyko had tried to explain it to me while we were working the other day but it was all very confusing. None the less, Keller had explained that everyone would be celebrating tonight and it was one of the biggest feasts the clan held every year - so there was no way I could not be there.

"Anyways, you wouldn't want to disappoint Jaxon would you?" she teased not even bothering to look up at me this time. "You are going with him right?"

"Uh, well," I stuttered as I felt my face flush. "He just asked if I was going, not if I would go with him. There's a difference right?"

"Not with that man," she replied instantly, laughing at my embarrassment.

Sighing I went back behind the curtain and stripped out of the green dress, and reached for the teal one Keller had mentioned earlier. The whole clan is going to be there, I tried to reason with myself, no need to get flustered. I turned looking into the shard of mirror Keller had positioned against a wall. Could be worse I suppose.

"I actually kind of like this one" I said, coming out and turning around for her in a dramatic fashion. "And I'm not just saying that because I'm tired of playing dressup."

Looking up, she smiled and nodded.

"That looks great on you!" She complimented. The dress was a vibrant teal color, much brighter than anything I had gotten used to wearing. It had only one sleeve, leaving my other arm bare but Keller assured me that it - along with the low hanging bust line - were completely typical for clan celebration wear. I had no choice but to trust her. Already she had moved towards me and had started hanging beads, feathers, and claws in random sections of the dress for decoration. As she tied a ornate woven leather belt around my waist, I struggled not to pull the diagonally cut hem down.

"Leave it," Keller warned, looking at me seriously. I sighed again and let the dress fall out of my hands, letting it fall back to just slightly above my mid thigh. Even though I was wearing boy-short underwear, I still felt a little exposed. That thought quickly vanished though as two women passed us wearing what would possibly pass as loincloth if I was being generous, and a bra. I was suddenly much more grateful for my dress.

Keller reemerged from the back room now dressed in the tight leather dress she had chosen earlier. Beads and feathers hung from the bottom of the dress and her sleeves, making her look almost feral in the fading sunlight. Smiling she made the final adjustments for my own dress before deciding we were ready.

The sun had already set by the time we had made it to the center of the village. A huge bonfire had been lit in the center and already people were gathering, drinking and dancing around to the music. It was the first time I had seen a lot of the people here really relax and drop their armor - figuratively and literally. Because it was a holiday of sorts for the clan, it was the one day where they weren't constantly on guard or suited up, there was no fighting at clan feasts.

"Cole! Keller!" a voice called out from across the way. Turning, we both smiled as Lucas approached us.

"You almost look like a warrior now!" Keller teased, causing Lucas to blush awkwardly. But she was right. Since there was no need for their armor tonight, most of the men opted for body paint instead - Lucas included.

"Thank you, I think," he responded bashfully. "You both look great as well."

At that moment a bunch of glass jars were passed our way. Handing one to each of us, Keller passed the case to someone else before showing us how to open the jars. As soon as the jar was open the odor caused my eyes to water. I recognize this. Taking a small sip I cringed as it burned down my throat - yup, this is what we had used the day we had arrived to counteract Jaxon's antifreeze poisoning.

"Well, cheers!" I toasted, holding out my jar to Lucas and Keller. Lucas clinked his against mine while Keller looked on confused.

"It's a sky people thing," I explained after a moment, deciding not to go into the details of toasting. It wasn't long until others from the clan started to arrive and the celebration really began.

"Cheers!" Keller yelled, thrusting her drink into the middle of our semi-circle group of friends who had joined us. Me and Lucas had long given up on trying to explain it to everyone, and eventually had gotten them to just accept it.

"Cheers!" Penn yelled back, hitting his drink against those in the middle, spilling some over the side. I laughed before cheering as well. At some point Penn and Nyko had joined us - Nyko was pacing himself throughout the night and Penn had set upon a personal mission to consume as much alcohol as possible, much to the entertainment of everyone else.

Taking another sip of my drink, I looked around the clearing. The fire was still roaring, giving off enough light to make out everything happening around us clearly.

"He'll be bringing in the fresh kills with the other hunters," Keller told me, nudging my shoulder playfully. She was also feeling the effects of the alcohol.

"Who?" I asked, confused about what she was talking about.

"Jaxon," she replied as if it was the most obvious thing. "Isn't that who you were looking for?"

"I was just looking," I told her, shrugging my shoulders. I had been curious about why I hadn't seem him yet, but I wasn't about to admit that out loud.

"Get up! Come on," Penn said as he came to stand in front of me extending his hand down to me. I looked up at him, trying to ignore how little he was wearing and how well the blue paint looked against his body. Penn had been nothing but a brother to me since I arrived, but I couldn't stop myself from blushing anyways.

"Come on," he whined, reaching down for my hand since I hadn't moved. Pulling me to my feet I fidgeted with my dress after sending him a confused look. He just gave me the drunk version of his stupid lopsided smile and pulled me along behind him closer to the fire.

"Dance with me," he asked, though it came out sounding more like a statement. Freezing in place I shook my head. I didn't do dancing. I looked around to the people near me jumping and spinning around in beat with the drums. Nope, definitely not a dancer. We only had one dance a year back on the Arc, and even there I didn't dance.

"Come on Cole," Penn begged, sending me what I'm sure he thought was a sad puppy dog face - a concept I had to explain to the warrior a few days ago.

"I can't dance," I admitted quietly, hoping he would let me go. His grin only got bigger though.

"I'll teach you," he replied before tugging me closer to the other people before I could protest. Once we were mixed in with the others he started to spin me around, pausing every few spins to show me a different step to the dance.

Maybe this isn't so bad, I thought to myself as Penn twirled me under his arm. He sent me a guilty smile when I was back in front of him before spinning me away from him and letting go of my hand. I went to turn back to him, but Artigas grabbed my hand instead and motioned for me to keep going. We switched partners a couple more times before the music changed to a slower but still up-tempo beat. I smiled and nodded at the man in front of me, who did the same before leaving me to find his original dance partner.

I started to make my way out of the group of people who had gathered around the fire to dance before a hand grabbed my wrist. I sighed, another jar of alcohol and a brief break sounded like heaven right now. Turning, my mood darkened when I saw who had stopped me.

With my hand in his, he spun me around before pulling me in front of him.

"Delano," I growled, narrowing my eyes at the one person who could make this night go from great to awful in a matter of seconds.

"Cole," he answered, his voice mockingly sweet. He spun me again before placing both of his hands on my hips.

"You look ravishing tonight," he purred in my ear. I groaned and pushed away from him, but he caught my hand again and continued dancing.

"What do you want now?" I asked shortly. "I would like to return to enjoy the feast as quickly as possible, so if we could just get this over with?"

I smiled slightly at hearing my tone. Maybe I should be drunk more often when I confront people.

"I'm hurt that you're not enjoying this as much as I am," he mocked, tightening his hold on my waist. As he moved in closer his breath also reeked of alcohol. A moment later he stopped moving, turning his attention to something over my shoulder. The music also changed as well, the other instruments had stopped leaving only the drums still beating.

I pulled away from Delano and turned to see what was happening. The hunters were back! Which meant food, my stomach growled at the thought. With all the others around me I couldn't get a clear view of the incoming group, but the yells and cheers around me gave me a pretty good idea of what was happening.

"We aren't finished little one," Delano growled in my ear, pressing himself against my back as his hand found my waist again. I cringed at his touch, but with so many people around I couldn't find a way to put any distance between us. I closed my eyes and froze as I felt his hand drop lower on my hip. Surely he wouldn't try anything here? Not with so many people around?

"Cole?"

Keller's voice broke me out of my thoughts, and I immediately looked in the direction her voice came from. Delano growled again from behind me as he turned and saw her making her way towards us.

"I'll find you later," he breathed in my ear before pushing away from me. Keller glared at his retreating form as she came up next to me.

"It was him wasn't it?" she asked directly, still glaring over my shoulder. I gulped and shook my head.

"Cole, you look absolutely terrified right now," she said, gently taking my hands and moving in front of me. Looking at her it was clear she already had figured it out. I sighed and nodded my head once.

"You can't tell anyone Keller, I mean it," I told her, not breaking eye contact. She looked at me confused, her head tilted slightly to the side.

"But why not Cole?" she asked. "He deserves what's coming to him for hurting you. All you have to do is say the word and half the clan would be fighting over who gets to knife him first."

Somehow the thought wasn't reassuring.

"No Keller," I said, my voice having no room for arguments. "No one finds out, no one but you will ever know."

She looked at me incredulously.

"But…"

"No Keller," I interrupted. "Please. No one else."

It took her a moment but eventually she sighed and nodded, agreeing to keep my secret. We made our way back to where we had been seated before, the smell of food wafting in the air made my stomach growl again loudly.

"Food first?" Keller asked looking at me hopefully. I just nodded and smiled at her.

"Yeah, food first."

We changed direction and headed toward the open pit where the food was cooking over an open fire. Keller explained that it was the warriors from the northern clan that had hunted for this feast, as if their red body paint didn't already set them apart. While salivating over the food I also subtly looked around for Jaxon - he would have been one of the warriors hunting.

I suddenly lost my appetite. A group of women from the village - the ones who I had seen earlier dressed in barely anything at all - were surrounding the warriors cooing over their skills. Jaxon was no exception as I watched as a woman I didn't recognize pressed up against him.

"If looks could kill they would all be dead," Keller teased quietly. I faced her again still glaring. I didn't even understand why I was so angry in the first place - it would make sense for Jaxon to get the attention of other women, I mean … he was Jaxon.

I spared another look in his direction, immediately regretting it as his eyes locked with mine. I glanced at the woman who was now playing with the buckle on his belt before turning away from him. Breath Cole. He's a grown man who can make his own stupid decisions.

"Do you ever realize that you think out loud sometimes?" Keller asked, smirking at me with an amused glint in her eyes. I blushed. I should probably work on that.

"Let's just get food and go back before I throw up," I suggested, watching Keller's grin get even bigger. I just stared at her, what was so amusing?

"Are you sick?" a concerned voice asked from behind me. I groaned inwardly and glared at Keller for not giving me a better heads up.

"No Jaxon, I'm alright," I told him as I turned to face him, careful to keep my disdain off my face. He looked me up and down quickly, causing me to blush, before nodding.

"Good," he told me, before handing me a stick with roasted meat on it. "You must be hungry."

My blush deepened as I took the food from his hand, "Yeah I am, but you didn't have bring me anything … I could have gotten it."

A small smile ghosted over his lips.

"I know, but I was hoping you would do me a favor tonight and thought you would be more willing to agree if you had eaten. I know you get cranky when you're hungry," he said lightly.

I wanted to be mad at him, but as I chewed my first bite of meat I found it impossible.

"I'm sure she would be more than happy to do any favor for you Jaxon," Keller teased, elbowing me in the ribs gently. I could feel my face reddening. I shot her a look before turning back to the warrior in front of me - whose shirtless, painted, sculpted body hadn't failed to distract me.

"What exactly do you need?" I asked, swallowing my food and managing to meet his eyes again. One of his eyebrows was arched and he stood with his hands on his hips watching me. Guess I wasn't as subtle as I thought. But with his pants hanging so low on his hips and the intricate designs painted on his skin - who could balme me.

"For you to come with me," he replied effortlessly, nodding his head behind him. The women from before were still congregated around the other warriors, some were still staring at Jaxon as well. But others had congregated around a makeshift table as well. Indra and Nyko were seated behind the table talking, Gustus was a few seats away talking to Tristan, a man from Jaxon's clan when it suddenly all came together. They were all members of the Tribune - the leaders of the clan. Why would he want me with him?

"Come, please," he asked, his tone even but his eyes were pleading. His stormy grey eyes were one of his best features, and right now I was cursing them.

"Fine, but we can find another jar of alcohol first," I asked him, smiling slightly. He laughed and nodded, motioning for me to follow him. I went to wave to Keller but found that she was already weaving her way back through the crowd.

I followed behind Jaxon, stopping for a moment to talk to one of the seamstresses of the clan. I traded herbs for clothes on a regular basis with her and we had gotten to be fairly good friends. After catching up I turned back the table to see Jaxon staring pointedly at me, glancing down only briefly at plate of meat and two jars of the liquor sitting in front of him at the table.

As I made my way to over to the table, I stopped when one of the women from before reached him before I did. She was trying hard to keep Jaxon's attention, however, his eyes only broke away from mine when she reached out to touch him. I stayed in my place, unsure of what I should do. Who was I to tell her to back off? Jaxon could do that himself couldn't he? Why wasn't he?

A not so subtle cough broke me away from my thoughts. Nyko was now looking at me amused from his spot at the table, and Indra next to him smiled slightly as well. I shrugged my shoulders at them, too far away to ask them what I should do. Nyko rolled his eyes and Indra nodded her head in Jaxon's direction - who was now distracted by trying to keep the woman's hands from roaming - and then nodded at me.

I wondered if this is what Jaxon had wanted me to help him with…. I shot Indra another hesitant look, causing her to motion more fervently in Jaxon's direction - who despite being seated right next to her had failed to notice our silent dialogue.

I watched as one of the girls hands dipped beneath the line of the table and steeled myself. It was now or never. Gathering as much nerve as I could muster I walked over them. Jaxon immediately noticed that I was now standing right beside the girl, but she hadn't even looked up at me as she continued to try to climb in Jaxon's lap.

"You shouldn't be alone tonight," the girl cooed at him, causing me to scrunch my nose in disgust. Like he would ever go for someone so obviously desperate. Jaxon was too strong to cater to someone so weak.

"He's not," I voiced, causing the girl to finally stop and acknowledge my presence. She turned and glared at me, clearly upset that I had interrupted her assault. I kept my face as even as possible, arching my eyebrow to dare her to challenge me.

"Get lost," she growled.

"Funny I was going to suggest you do the same," I countered quickly.

"He wants me here," she pouted, looking to Jaxon for support. His eyes hadn't left me though since I had walked up. I looked over the girl, by the way she acted she definitely wasn't a warrior, if it came down to it I could probably take her in a fight….

I stopped myself there. Since when I was I resorting to fighting people?

"Doesn't really look like it," I told her, getting more annoyed by the second on how draining this situation was. Deciding to end it, I pushed past her and moved towards Jaxon. He pushed his seat back from the table slightly and grabbed my hand to pull me towards him. Adjusting myself so I was comfortable in his lap - well as comfortable as the I could get - I spared one last glance at the girl.

"You can go now."

She huffed before stomping away. I rolled my eyes.

"Didn't know you had that in you Cole," Indra commented from next to me, a small grin on her face. I felt Jaxon's hand wrap around my waist gently and I just laughed softly in response.

"I didn't either," I admitted before turning my head to look at Jaxon. "You owe me big time."

He just smirked at me and nodded.

"I'll start collecting my debt by stealing some of this food from you," I said smugly, taking one of the sticks of meat from the plate he had gathered. There was more than enough for two, but he played along anyways.

"Then what will I eat?" he asked playfully, his eyes shining as they reflected the fire.

"I might share if you ask nice," I teased, causing both Indra and Nyko to laugh at Jaxon's expense.

"Perhaps I'll just drink both glasses of alcohol and forgo food," he replied, reaching the arm that wasn't rested against me around to pick up the closest glass. I had forgotten about those. As the night went on it was getting harder to find those stupid little jars.

"Fine I guess we can share," I conceded, pretending to pout for a moment.

"I never thought I would live to see this," Indra gasped from her seat, holding her sides as she struggled to breath from laughing. "Our clan's most fearsome warrior bargaining for the food - that he hunted and killed - from a defenseless little sky girl."

Nyko was laughing now as well, causing the rest of the table to look at us strangely. I felt my cheeks flush - I hadn't thought about it like that. Jaxon was about to respond, but I pulled a piece of meat off the stick I was holding and held it up to his mouth instead.

"Let me win this one," I said, smiling bashfully at him now. "Don't ruin it."

He rolled his eyes, a habit he blamed me for, and said nothing as he ate the piece of meat from my fingers. Since I was attacked, Jaxon had been by my side almost constantly - even after I was healed and back to normal. When we were alone he had become more caring and softer around me, but even in our closest moments we hadn't flirted so brazenly back and forth.

I spent the rest of the evening seated on Jaxon, who never complained of my weight. We fell into an easy conversation back and forth with Nyko and Indra next to us and traded stories. The moon had passed its apex hours ago, as evening faded into morning. The bonfire in the centre still raged and only a few had left even as late as it was.

I was listening to one of Indra's hunting stories, curled against Jaxon with my head tucked into his shoulder. At some point I had leant against him and I took full advantage of it when he didn't complain.

Laughing at Indra's story I looked across the village center watching the people who were still sober enough to dance, and some who were not. Others were passed out against logs or other tables, to gone to make it back to their home. I was about to turn my attention back to the story Nyko had started when two figures caught my eye at the edge of the woods.

I stiffened when I recognized the pair - Keller and Delano. Jaxon's had squeezed my waist gently, causing me to look back him momentarily. I ignored his confused look and turned my attention back to where I could see Keller.

Shit. Please don't be arguing with him. Please don't say anything. I prayed silently as I watched them. Keller pointed at me before throwing her hands in the air. Shit. Not good. Not good.

Keller stormed off, leaving only Delano in the clearing. He suddenly turned slowly toward me, even from across the center I could make out his anger. In a moment I saw him pull an object out of his pocket, as he purposely reflected it in the light of the fire he smiled darkly at me as my eyes went wide.

As he turned to walk into the forest in the same direction Keller went I started to panic. Standing up suddenly I started to move away from the table, but Jaxon's hand on my wrist stopped me. All three of my friends were now looking at me with concerned looks.

I should tell them, I thought for a second. It won't do any good though. They aren't armed. Delano is… I pulled my arm away and started to jog across the clearing where I had just seen Keller disappear.

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. I had to find them. I had to find Keller before Delano. I'm not going to let him hurt her. Pausing only a moment, I took a deep breath before I headed into the pitch black forest after them.


	17. Hearts and Minds

I thanked the heavens for the full moon as I moved, its glowing rays illuminating the woods ahead of me. I was trying to move as quickly and quietly as possible, the element of surprise might be my only advantage against Delano if I …. no, when I found him. Letting Keller get hurt isn't an option I reminded myself. I paused for a second, listening to the woods around me like Penn had taught me on one of our hunting trips - what I wouldn't do for my bow right now.

A muffled cry caught my attention - it had to be Keller. I started moving in the direction of the cry, hyper aware of any dry branches or leaves in my way now. Voices became clearer as I moved in closer.

"No one will hear you scream," a voice taunted lowly. A shiver subconsciously ran down my spine, that was definitely Delano. I came up behind a tree, now only a matter of feet away from them. Keller was on the ground, her back against a tree while Delano stood over her. I glanced around the area, looking for anything that could help me gain the upperhand - nothing but trees and sticks. No one was ever convincing me to go somewhere unarmed ever again.

I took a deep breath and started to run through scenarios in my head. I needed to be smart about this if I wanted to get Keller and myself out unharmed.

Keller's scream pulled me from my plotting as Delano reached down and pulled her up by her hair. In a moment he had her pushed against the tree with his arm resting against her throat. She was trying to fight him but he just laughed, Keller was no warrior she didn't stand a chance against his strength. He leaned into her and bit the junction of her shoulder and neck as she struggled, his other hand roaming her body. Something in me snapped. The pain in my shoulder from where he had attacked me weeks ago felt fresh, bile rose in my throat and all I saw was red. Keller was not going to go through another attack again, not while I was around.

Throwing all hopes of a plan to the wind, I ran towards Delano. My only purpose to get him away from Keller and give her a chance to escape. I had fought against Delano before and dealt damage, and I was ten times as pissed now than I was before.

I grunted as my body made contact with his, sending us both tumbling to the ground. I quickly rolled away, putting myself between him and Keller.

"Cole?" Keller gasped from behind me, her voice shaking as her body trembled.

"Run Keller," I told her, glancing back for only a second before training my eyes back on Delano who was pushing himself off the ground.

"But.."

"No Keller, run. Just go. His fight's with me," I interrupted. I couldn't look out for her and myself against him, I was barely confident enough to protect myself. I heard her start to move behind me and take off, Delano lunged after her. Moving quickly I intercepted his path making him stop and face me.

"Let her go, it's me you want right?" I asked him, my voice coming out braver than I felt. Thank god for adrenaline.

"We had a deal little one," he taunted, settling into an offensive position and cracking his neck. "If you hadn't gone and talked to your little friend, none of this would have happened."

I felt a pang of guilt for a second, but as the moon reflected off his knife I pushed those feelings away. I wasn't going to let this rage slip.

"If you were a decent human being none of this would have happened," I responded. "And this stops now. I'm not going to let you hurt anyone I care about. I'm not going to let you threaten them."

Delano looked amused, a sinister smile forming across his face.

"The only one who should feel threatened right now is you, you're the one who is going to get hurt," he replied before swinging at me with his knife.

Ducking his arm I moved around him. Regaining his footing he turned and charged again, tackling me instead of giving me room to dodge. I wheezed as his weight forced the air out of my lungs and I instantly started to struggle against him. One of my knees caught him between his legs, causing him him to groan and lean back off of me for a moment. Taking advantage of the opening I grabbed the tree trunk above my head and pulled myself from underneath him, kicking him hard in the chest as I did so. He fell back and his knife went flying from his hands.

I looked towards the fallen weapon and back to the warrior, who now seemed to notice its absence as well. Not wanting to waste an opportunity I took off towards the knife. I was nearly at it when Delano's hand snaked around my ankle causing me to hit the ground hard again.

"Not so fast little one," he growled as he stood up, towering over my fallen form. Looking around frantically I grabbed the closest solid object and slammed it into his knee hoping to dislocate the joint. I almost smiled when I heard a popping noise as I made impact and watched him fall the ground next to me. I turned and pushed myself up, not even getting off my knees before his hand entangled itself in my hair and pulled me back towards him.

"You're going to pay for that," he said, the pain evident in his voice. That I did smile at.

I threw my elbow back knocking the wind out of his lungs, but his grip didn't release. Instead he pulled me back further, arching my back uncomfortably and twisted my offending arm behind my back until I cried out.

"Goddamn it," I cursed, feeling my muscles burn at the abuse. I tossed and turned but his hold on my arm kept me from doing any actual damage.

"I like it better when you fight back," he growled huskily in my ear. "I'm actually glad you interrupted. Keller's to weak to fight like you do, it wouldn't have been nearly as satisfying."

A fresh wave of anger coursed through my body at the mention of my friend's name. And as he released my hair to push me forward onto my hands and knees I reeled my head back to make contact with his face. The sudden headache was worth the pain when I heard his nose make a sickening crunch.

He let go of me altogether as his hands went to tend to his gushing nose. Not waiting for him to acclimate, I scrambled forward towards my original objective. Knife in hand I stood up, feeling powerful and still very pissed off. He wiped his hands against his shirt, smearing it with blood before standing up to face me.

"You think that changes anything?" he questioned, his voice sounding more guttural with his nasal passage blocked.

"I know it does," I answered, feeling the anger inside of me still burning strong. He stepped forward to swing at me, and like before I ducked under his arm and moved behind him. This time I let the knife cut across his shirt as I turned back to face him though. Hissing in pain he threw back his elbow hitting me in the face causing me to stumble. Feeling him behind me I swung out my arm, the knife slashing him across his face.

Enraged he ignored the streaming blood and tackled me to the ground, sending the knife flying out of my hand. Delano didn't even seem to notice as he straddled my waist and wrapped his hands around my throat. I tried to push his hands off of me, scratching and clawing where I could, but the blood dripping from his face made it nearly impossible for me to get a good grip on him.

Dots were clouding my vision, I needed air and fast. Hitting anything in reach, I was rewarded with fresh air when my fist made contact with his knee that I had attempted to dislocate earlier. He reached back and slapped me hard.

"Is it worth it?" he rasped out. "Is all this pain worth it? Are they all worth it?"

Looking at him dead on I narrowed my eyes.

"Yes," I answered, no uncertainty detectable in my voice. Feeling the blood pool in my mouth from his last blow, I spit it out at him. Angry once more he reached back to hit me again but was stopped by the spear point resting at his throat.

"Get. Up. Now," a voice commanded. Delano moved off of me, grumbling under his breath. As I caught mine I looked up at my savior.

"Never been happier to see you Indra," I told her, my voice raspy from the abuse. She said nothing, but kept her spear against Delano's throat. A second later I was being hoisted up - I hadn't even realized that others had arrived.

Jaxon held me at arm's length looking over my body. Behind him I could see Nyko standing protectively in front of Keller. Suddenly all the anger left my body - Keller was alright, everyone was okay. It was over.

Exhaustion caught up with me quickly, along with a dull throbbing across my entire body. Jaxon sensing the change tightened his grip to keep me standing. I was about to thank him but stopped when I looked up at him. His stormy eyes were raging with an anger that I had never seen before, and it wasn't directed at Delano but at me. I knitted my eyebrows together, what had I done?

"Take him to the prison Indra, I will meet you there shortly," Jaxon demanded, his voice leaving no room for objection. Without saying another word he bent down and scooped me up into his arms, denying my protests.

"I can walk you know," I told him, hoping to ease some of the tension. But his harsh glare shut me up immediately. He hadn't looked at me like that since I had first arrived on Earth.

It was a quiet and quick trip back to the healer's building. Jaxon set me down on one of the cots and stood silently at the end of the bed while Nyko came up to tend to me.

Nyko sighed as he kneeled down in front of me, taking in my disheveled appearance.

"I'm okay," I told him quietly. His quick glance down at the blood staining my dress and skin told me that he didn't believe me though.

"It's mostly Delano's blood," I explained, looking down for the first time at my dress too. It had been such a beautiful dress.

"Some bruising and a few cuts, that's all I promise," I told Nyko. The healer nodded and started to wash some of the blood off my face. Once he was done he looked me over once, content that I had been telling the truth and that most of the blood was in fact Delano's.

"See good as new," I joked weakly, earning me a glare from everyone still in the room.

"How can you be joking right now Cole?" Keller asked from beside Jaxon. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, I instantly felt bad.

"He could have killed you," she continued, causing both Nyko and Jaxon to stand a little straighter. I sighed and shook my head.

"If I didn't do anything, he would have killed you. Or worse," I responded, my voice barely above a whisper. I couldn't hide anything from them anymore.

"Everyone get out," Jaxon ordered suddenly, his eyes not leaving my bed. I gulped at the harshness in his voice.

"Are you sure this is the time?" Nyko asked as he moved beside Jaxon.

"Out. Now."

He waited before everyone left before continuing, "When were you going to tell me?"

I didn't answer but just hung my head down, taking a sudden interest in my hands.

"You weren't going to were you?" He questioned. I wanted to tell him everything, about the attacks and the threats - but nothing came out.

"Were you!" he repeated, this time yelling angrily at me. His voice caused me to flinch, and after a moment I just shook my head softly.

"All this time we took care of you … I took care of you, and you just played us for fools," he accused. "You lied to us. You lied to me. We went out of our way to care for you, and this is how you repay us? By breaking our trust - by protecting the man who attacked you."

He turned away fuming, his body shaking with rage. He hadn't changed from the feast, still dressed in only his low hanging cargo pants. But his body, painted with tribal designs that highlighted his muscles clenching in anger made him more terrifying than any set of treen clan armor I had seen yet.

"No," I responded shyly, causing him to turn back and face me. "I wasn't protecting him."

"Just lying then?" he snapped back.

I sighed, that was technically true. I ran my hand through my tangled hair, all the braids from earlier had fallen apart.

"It was the only way to protect you guys," I whispered.

"Protect us?" he asked unbelievingly.

"He said that if I told anyone that he would kill everyone I cared about until someone stopped him," I explained. "I didn't know what to do…"

"You should have told me," Jaxon argued.

"He might have killed you!" I replied, irritated that he wasn't understanding where I was coming from. Apparently that was still the wrong thing to say.

"You think so little of me that a warrior as unskilled as Delano would best me?" he asked, stepping closer to me, anger written across his face.

"No of course not!" I argued, wishing I could just literally put my foot in my mouth to end this discussion. "I just couldn't take a chance. Delano is sneaky and doesn't fight fair."

Jaxon scoffed at my explanation, clearly not convinced.

"You've protected me since I landed here," I told him, daring to meet his eyes for the first time tonight. "You all do so much for me … When he threatened you guys I wasn't thinking clearly I guess."

"Obviously," he interrupted. Sighing, I dropped my head down again.

"If I never mentioned it then no one would get hurt, that was the deal," I tried again. "By pretending like I didn't remember, it was the only way I could keep you guys safe. It was the only way I could protect you."

Jaxon just stared at me, saying nothing. He turned after a few minutes to walk towards the table in the center of the room and slammed his fists down hard against it. I jumped at the sound.

"I'm sorry," I muttered. Jaxon just shook his head, still hunched over the table.

"He could have killed you tonight," he responded, his voice void of anger but eerily calm instead. "You walked into the forest, alone, and unarmed like an idiot. If we hadn't followed you in, if Keller hadn't run into us in a panic … we may not have found you in time. You allowed your heart to make decisions instead of your head, and that made you weak. Your weakness put everyone in danger, not just yourself. You should realize that."

I stared at his back, soaking in what he said. Guilt rushed through my body in waves, each breaking me down a little more each time. I could feel tears burning down my cheeks.

"Uhm, am I interrupting something?" a hesitant voice called from the doorway. Lucas was looking back and forth between me and Jaxon, unsure of what he had just walked in on.

"No, I was just leaving," Jaxon answered, straightening himself. I wanted to stop him, make him stay. But I was paralyzed as I watched him walk out, never looking back at me once. Seconds later Nyko and Keller joined Lucas at my bedside.

I explained to them everything that had happened solemnly. Never looking directly at them. I told them of the threats, of how he sabotaged Lucas' horse, how he threatened Keller's son and of the deal we had made. I tried to explain why I hadn't told them, hoping they would be at least a little more understanding than Jaxon.

"You should have told us Cole," Nyko said gently, taking my chin in his hand so I would look at him. "But you had good intentions. And what you did tonight was brave."

Funny, I didn't feel brave. I might have earlier. But right now I just felt ashamed …. weak.

Keller hugged me and thanked me over and over before she left to check on her son, dragging Lucas out with her. I laid down on my side, tucking my arm underneath my head ignoring Nyko who was still sitting across from me.

"What is bothering you Cole?" he asked softly, his eyes boring into mine.

"Jaxon is furious," I answered quietly. "He wouldn't listen to me. He took everything as an insult, and he thinks I'm weak now."

"I imagine he would be pretty angry," Nyko replied, causing me to glare at him. Sighing, he ran a hand through his beard before continuing.

"He sees himself as your protector," he explained. "I imagine he's angry because he failed you. He let you get hurt again."

"But this isn't his fault, there's nothing he could have done," I argued.

"Jaxon is a proud man, he sees you not trusting him enough to tell him what happened as mark against him," Nyko said. "And because you didn't trust him, you got hurt. It is no stretch to see why his pride would be injured."

I let what Nyko said sink in. Jaxon wasn't responsible for this, he couldn't have protected me unless I had told him my secret. But that would have put him in danger.

"What happens now?" I asked solemnly.

"You go home and rest," Nyko told me. "Jaxon and Indra will deal with Delano."

At least he would get what he had coming to him. Neither Jaxon or Indra would let him off lightly.

Nyko walked me home in silence. The village quiet now, a shell of the feast that was raging only hours ago. Once we reached my home Nyko bid me goodnight before heading home as well - it had been a long night for everyone. But even as my body screamed in exhaustion I couldn't find sleep. Eventually I stopped trying. Gathering the bear skin blanket Jaxon had gifted me I walked outside. I was surprised when I saw him sitting against a tree just ten feet from my door. He didn't acknowledge my presence as I came up slowly next to him, but didn't protest when I sat down a foot away from him.

"Delano?" I asked quietly. Jaxon's rage from earlier had seemed to disappear, and I wondered if that meant that my attacker was now dead.

"He's being dealt with - _jus drein jus daun_," he replied. I nodded, recognizing the phrase.

"You're still angry with me aren't you?" I asked hesitantly. His posture was rigid and he had yet to even look at me, clear giveaways.

"Yes," he answered, his tone neutral.

"I'm sorry you know," I told him, turning myself towards him trying to catch his eyes. He turn his eyes away though and just grunted in response.

"Jaxon, will you look at me please?" I begged, unnerved by his cold treatment. He kept his gaze fixed on something in the distance though. Taking a deep breath I made a decision.

"Jaxon, I need you to look at me and listen, actually listen to me," I said as I dropped my blanket and moved myself so I was straddling his lap. His eyes snapped to mine at my sudden movement, his hands automatically going to my waist to push me off.

"Stop, just stop," I told him unwavering. "I need you to hear me out. You can go back to hating me and ignoring me after, but just listen to me for a second."

He seemed to deliberate his choices for a moment before he relaxed back against the tree, his hands not leaving my waist, but no longer trying to push me off either.

"You need to know that I am sorry, really and truly sorry," I told him not breaking eye contact. "I am sorry for lying to you, for always being such a pain, for not thinking things through, for making you think I didn't trust you, for being weak…. I'm sorry for a lot of things Jaxon. But the one thing I am not sorry for is trying to protect you and everyone else. Even if it was wrong, even if I did it in the stupidest way possible, I'm not sorry for it. I would do anything to protect the people I care about. I would do anything to protect you, even if that meant putting myself in danger. That may make me stupid or weak, but I don't care."

Jaxon cut me off by wrapping his hand behind my neck and pulling me into him. For a moment when his lips met mine my mind went blank. I barely registered he was kissing me before he pulled away from me. His hands dropped back to my waist before he looked away.

"I do not hate you, and I was wrong when I called you weak," he admitted, still not looking at me. "You are infuriating, stubborn, and impulsive. But not stupid, and not weak."

The tension between us seemed to fade. Being as brave as I dared, I raised my hand to his cheek and turned his head so he was looking at me once again.

"I'll take it," I said with a small smile, before leaning in to kiss him like I had meant to the first time. As I crashed my lips against his passionately, his hands gripped my back and pulled me closer to him. Tangling my hands in his shaggy mohawk cut style and the braids that ran down his back, he groaned and held me tighter. It wasn't until I was sure we were both about to pass out from lack of oxygen that we pulled part.

"Does that mean I'm forgiven?" I asked hopefully as he rested his forehead against mine gently. He sighed and rolled his eyes, causing me to smile.

"For tonight I suppose," he answered. Content with his answer I cuddled up against him, trying to ignore how cold it had gotten without my blanket. Feeling me shiver Jaxon laughed slightly, before standing up with me in his arms. He picked up my bear blanket and draped it over me as he carried me back into my house.

"Promise me something," he asked, as he knelt down on my pallet of furs and blankets dropping me softly in the middle. I nodded as I curled back into my bed, the plush furs calling me to sleep.

"Promise you won't keep anything from me in the future?" he asked. "Let me be the one to protect you, not the other way around."

"I promise," I told him as I yawned, making him smile down at me. "You be the brains, I'll be the heart."

He nodded and pulled the blanket over me, making sure I was covered completely, "good, now sleep."

Sleep sounded great. Jaxon went to stand up and before my mind could register what was happening I reached out and stopped him.

"Stay?" I asked sleepily. "Please?"

He nodded and I released his hand. I rolled onto my side so that he would have enough room beside me and access to the blankets. I felt him crawl into my bed behind me, almost hesitantly laying against me. I snuggled back against him and he reached to pull the blankets around himself before resting his arm over my waist holding me close.

"Thank you for staying," I mumbled to him, my words slurred as I started to sink into a slumber. Before I passed out though I thought I heard him respond.

"You're welcome, my heart."

But then again, it could have just been my imagination. With his warmth surrounding me either way I didn't care. I felt safe and happy in his arms.

* * *

><p><strong>The cat's out of the bag in this one, but don't worry - for those of you who hate Delano - he still has what he deserves coming to him. So please <em>continue to <span>review<span>/message/favorite/follow/etc._.. Definitely starting to get more Jaxon interaction going on as well, which I'm enjoying writing immensely. So again, leave me your thoughts and comments - I adore them.**

**Grounder language:**

_jus drein jus daun - **Blood must have blood**_


	18. What Doesn't Kill You

I let out a tired yawn as I stretched my arms above my head ignoring the dull ache in my muscles. The blankets shifted as I sat up and looked to the empty spot next to me. So it must have been a dream - Jaxon was never here. Letting out a disappointed sigh I pushed myself out of my pile of furs…. It had just felt so real with him laying beside me, his arm wrapped around me protectively. I had felt so safe.

Safe was a fleeting term on Earth though.

I pulled out clothes for the day - a thin strapped black tank top and dark brown pants, the typical wood clan color palette. I quickly shimmied into the clean pair of pants and I started to strip off my sleeping shirt when a rustling at my door caught my attention. I grabbed the knife I had kept from the landing ship and turned to face the intruder, forgetting completely about my state of undress. Fight first, be modest later I chided myself.

Jaxon walked in and paused, his eyes meeting mine before traveling down my body. Smirking he raised one of his eyebrows in a silent question.

"Shit Jaxon you scared me," I scolded, trying to hide my embarrassment. I grabbed the shirt I dropped and quickly pulled it on, turning away from him until my face returned to a normal non-beet red color.

"Not my intention," he replied, still with a smug grin on his face. "I brought you food. I thought I would get back before you woke up."

Well at least it hadn't been a dream, he had actually been here. Smiling I turned my attention to the the plate in his hands eyeing it greedily. It had some of the orange fruits that I loved, some of Bott's bread, and some bacon. I could feel my mouth watering.

"Sit and eat, these are your favorite," he told me, motioning to the small table I had shoved in the corner of my home.

"How do you know?" I questioned playfully, sitting at the table like he had instructed. He placed the food down in front of me and I automatically began peeling the fruit, not caring that the juice ran down my hands messily.

"Observation," he answered easily. I rolled my eyes. That did sound like him.

"Have you already eaten?" I asked him, deciding not to tease him on being creepy. That had earned me a half an hour lecture about his concern over my safety last time, and that was before everything with Delano had started.

"Yes," he said, moving towards my makeshift dresser and pulling a few small jars from his pocket. As I finished my fruit I moved on to the bacon - it was one of my favorite foods that I had tried so far on Earth. I continued to watch him silently as I finished my breakfast.

I watched in fascination as he dipped his fingers into the black jar and smeared it across his face in a straight line across his eyes. It was his war paint. I had seen him wear it before on hunts, but never for just around the village. He moved the black paint aside and opened the small jar of red. Dipping his fingers one by one into the jar he streaked it across his face diagonally, as if he had been clawed. As if Jaxon wasn't intimidating enough before, with his eyes standing out against the black and the red playing off the color of his tattoos, he looked absolutely terrifying.

"Hunting today?" I asked, not sure what the special occasion was. He just shook his head and motioned for me to come over to him. I wiped my hands on a nearby rag and walked over to him.

"The tribune will decide Delano's fate today," he told me, looking at hesitantly as if unsure on how I would react. "It is a formality, it is clear what we will decide."

He angled my chin up so I was looking at him and brought his fingers to my cheek. I let him paint my face while I thought over what he had just told me. I had no doubt that Jaxon and the others on the tribune would want to kill Delano, but a part of me hesitated at the thought. I was prepared to fight to the death last night to keep him from hurting Keller, but now that he was detained I wasn't so sure if that was the outcome I still wanted. I wanted him to hurt, no doubt about it. But whether or not I was ready to condemn a man to death was something else entirely. Jaxon must have sensed my internal struggle, because he paused for a moment before pulling me in front of him so we could both look into my makeshift mirror.

He had painted a thick black line across my eyes that faded into my hair, but what caught my attention was the red line he had painted over my scar across my eye. With my hair braided on one side leaving the other side loose, I looked like I belonged in the clan. You wouldn't ever be able to pick me out of a lineup of the others. The thought almost made me smile - Jaxon's hard stare reflecting back at me stopped me from doing that though.

"You will need to be strong today Cole," he told me softly, not breaking eye contact. "What he has done is punishable by a thousand cuts, and his death should be decided and carried out by your hands."

I sighed and looked away from the mirror. I wasn't feeling as strong as I looked.

"Do you want him to go free?" he asked accusingly. I shook my head and turned to face him.

"No of course not," I answered. "I want him to hurt for what he did to me, for what he almost did to Keller, and for what he threatened to do to everyone else. But I'm a healer Jaxon, I save people's lives not take them."

"If you let him walk away from this others will see it as a sign of weakness, and Delano will not be the last person who attacks trying to take what they want from you," he countered, his voice losing all gentleness. "He deserves death."

I looked down, conflicted over what I was feeling. I knew strength was everything in the clan, and appearing weak would be as good as a death sentence for myself but I couldn't come to grip with having a person's blood on my hands. Fighting in battle was different than killing a man roped to a tree…

"There is no decision here Cole, you must do this," Jaxon told me now glaring.

"Did I ever tell you what I was arrested for back in space? What they were going to float me for?" I asked Jaxon suddenly. His glare turned into a confused look before he turned away from me, sighing and running one of his hands through his faux mohawk that had been tied back today.

"No," he responded, irritated that I had changed the subject. I had explained to him and Nyko about the justice system back on the Arc and how we were selected to come to Earth because of our crimes, but I hadn't ever told them what I had done in the first place. I never had a reason to until now.

"There was a boy on the Arc, his name was John," I started, my voice lowering as I recalled the memory. "He was only ten at the time, but he was one of the most frequent visitors to the medical clinic. For a year he came in and out, always only letting me treat him. Broken bones, burns from shock whips, bruises and cuts, the poor kid had been through it all. And while he never admitted it, I knew it was his mother who was hurting him every day. His father had been floated a few years before that for stealing medicine for him when he got really sick, I had tried to help then too, but I didn't have any real authority. After that though, his mother started drinking and abusing him, it started off as just small things. A bruise here and there, but after months of getting away with it, it only got worse."

I paused, taking a deep breath and trying to push the images of the injured boy out of my head. Jaxon was waiting patiently for me to continue, his attention not wavering since I had started my story.

"One night I went over to their dorm to drop off some extra burn cream for John but when I got there guards surrounding the place. I thought the worst, that maybe his mother had finally gone too far and done more than just scar him so I ran in to find him. He was curled up in a corner crying just staring at the body of his mother. When she had started to hit him he had pushed her back. When she fell she hit her head, it had only knocked her out but because she had been drinking vomit pooled in her throat and essentially drowned her. They arrested him for her death, but I made myself a promise that I would always try to look out for him, I felt guilty for not doing more. I kept in contact with him, visited him when I could but a few years later he got really sick again - the same virus that he had before his dad died. Knowing the consequences I stole medicine for him, because he would have died without it and I wasn't going to let that happen. the council found out I had been smuggling him medicine for years and arrested me. In my trial they told me that I deserved to die."

"You saved that boy," Jaxon interrupted. "Delano was not trying to save you."

"That's not the point," I replied shaking my head. "I guess what I'm trying to get across is that I knew by stealing that medicine that they would float me. But I had made a promise to myself to look after him, and the others on the Arc - that's why I wanted to become a doctor in the first place. I was willing to give my life to save his, and I've never regretted that choice. John made me see past myself and realize that every life is valuable, no one is inherently better or worse than anyone else. And now you're asking me to take someone elses life. And as justifiable as it may seem, who am I to say that my life is any more valuable than his?"

"He tried to kill you, to rape you and you want no justice?" he asked angrily.

"No, I want justice. But I don't want his life," I replied, angering Jaxon even more.

"So murderers should walk free?!" he countered.

"No," I answered quickly. "By taking someone's life you put a price on your own. But Delano didn't kill anyone. He deserves to be punished, but his punishment should fit his crime."

"He should die for hurting you," he growled.

"No. I get to decide his punishment don't I? Because I am the one he attacked?" I asked him.

"Yes," he responded after a moment, not liking how I was deciding to handle everything. He moved closer to me, placing his hands on the sides of my neck and rubbing his thumbs gently across my cheeks.

"You must be wise in how you handle this. If you appear to weak than not even I will be able to protect you from the backlash," he said gently, losing the anger in his voice. "You will make your own decision, I just hope the one you make is the right one."

He leaned down slightly and kissed my forehead gently before turning and leaving, not giving me a chance to say anything else. I groaned as I sunk to the floor, leaning my head against the concrete wall I shut my eyes and tried to calm my racing heart. What the hell was I going to do?

* * *

><p>"Delano has been found guilty of the crimes against him, our laws dictate death. But because you are the one who he has wronged, his fate is left to you," Indra said, addressing me from her seat amongst the tribune. The entire village was gathered in the center surrounding the tribune table, myself and Delano who had been tied to a tree. I kept my face even as Indra led the summoning, both Jaxon and Nyko - plus two others - were also seated with her but had yet to speak.<p>

Delano was groaning quietly from next to me, I spared a glance in his direction as Indra continued her speech. Despite me having the final say in his punishment, it was clear that others in the village had made it clear of their opinions on the matter. He was looking worse for wear than I had left him in the woods. Stripped to just a basic t-shirt and pants, he had countless lacerations on his arms and dark bruises covering his body. Nyko had told me that Keller had already implemented her revenge and had him surgically cut key tendons in Delano's groin so he would never have the chance to force himself on another woman again. He was being spared no torture thus far.

"Cole, have you made a decision for his punishment?" Tristian asked me from the tribune - he was the other member from Jaxon's clan. I nodded in response.

"Yes I have," I voiced, though more for myself than anyone else. I steeled myself for what I was about to do. I had struggled with the decision for hours before Artigas had come to fetch me for the trial. But I was now resolved in my decision. I glanced up at Jaxon who just continued to observe quietly - I prayed he wouldn't be to upset with my choice.

"By your own clan rules your punishment should be death," I told Delano as I turned to face him, moving closer with each word. I pulled my knife from its holster on my belt and dragged it slowly down his shirt, pressing in enough so he could feel it but not enough to draw blood. If I hoped to get away with this, I needed to make it a show. I have to convince others that I made a wise decision, and that I wasn't weak I reminded myself.

"But I think death would be too kind," I continued, ignoring the hushed whispers from the others around me. "You have paid with your mahood for your attack on Keller."

I emphasized my point but dragging my knife lower below his belt, his sharp intake of breath and mumbled curses at the pain confirming my statement.

"And you will pay for your attack on me, blood must have blood," I told him as his eyes locked with mine. I slipped my knife back into its holster and reached down to open the leather pouch that strapped around my waist and thigh that Nyko had made for me so I could carry medicine and tools around with me at all times.

"I want you to live everyday in pain, and I want every dull throb and every ache to remind you of what you've done," I growled at him, letting my anger build for my upcoming task. "I want you to feel as weak and helpless as you made me feel."

I pulled out a small, sharp scalpel from my pouch surprising everyone. Delano's eyes darted to my tool and then back to mine, he was unsure of what I was going to do - but I was about to make it perfectly clear for him.

Taking one last deep breath and channeling all the anger and pain he had ever caused me I lunged at him without warning. Using my elbow I knocked his head hard against the tree momentarily stunning him, and giving me the opening I needed. I wasted no time running my scalpel across his face, scarring him like he had scarred me - content that it was deep enough to leave a lasting mark I continued on to his real punishment. I plunged my knife into his eye, trying not to think too deeply on what I was actually doing, and quickly sliced through his retina and optic nerve.

Delano's screams echoed in the forest and I stepped back once I was done to avoid the gushing blood. I had taken his sight and his eye, leaving only a bloody mess in its absence. This was his punishment, a life of struggle in exile. With his dominant eye gone, the once accomplished hunter would struggle for the rest of his life.

I turned back to the tribune holding my head high, not letting my expression reflect the disgust I truly felt.

"Blood has answered for blood," I called out so everyone in the village center could hear me clearly. "An eye for an eye, I trust the tribune will be satisfied with this and send him into exile."

The tribune talked amongst themselves for only a brief moment before silencing the clan. A small nod from Jaxon helped to slightly ease my tension.

"Blood has answered for blood," Indra agreed. "Delano you are banished from this clan for your actions. You will be killed on sight if we ever find you near here and anyone found helping you will share your fate."

With that the trial was over, two warriors cut Delano down and took him away. I didn't care to ask where, as far as I was concerned it was over with. Sighing I moved my way over to a small bucket of dirty water that was used for cleaning and dunked my hands in it. I was meticulous in making sure every bit of Delano's blood was off my hands and my scalpel before returning it to its pouch. No one who passed said anything to me, but nodded once in acknowledgement. Better than nothing I guess.

Turning around I saw Jaxon standing behind me waiting. I wiped my hands on my pants before looking up at him, neither of us saying anything for a few moments.

"You did good," he finally admitted quietly.

"I did what I had to do," I replied back, sending him a half hazard smile that didn't quite reach my eyes.

"Yes, you did," he agreed. "Come with me."

He motioned for me to follow but I stayed rooted in my spot. He was going in the opposite direction of my house, which is the only place I wanted to be right now. Cuddled under my mountain of furs and avoiding the world. I told Jaxon as much but he just shook his head and grabbed my hand gently.

"Come on," he urged. "Trust me."

I let him tug me behind him as we made our way through the village. I ignored the questioning glances from the others and kept my eyes trained on Jaxon's back. I didn't stop and ask him where we were going, I doubted he would tell me anyways. We kept walking until we were almost a mile away from the village until Jaxon had reached his intended destination.

Realizing that we had finally stopped I looked around to see where he had brought me. We were standing at the top of a waterfall that overlooked a small lake. With the sun starting to set the orange hues reflected off the water and illuminated the surrounding area in a blanket of glowing light - it was gorgeous.

I turned back to Jaxon to find him sitting on a rock unlacing his boots.

"What are you doing?" I asked, speaking for the first time since we had left the village. He just smirked at me but didn't reply. Once his boots were off, he laid down his sword and the multiple knives he carried in a pile next to them. Standing up he motioned for me to take his spot on the rock. Sitting down hesitantly I continued to stare at him questioningly.

"Jaxon?" I called out as he knelt down in front of me and started unlacing my own boots. Once they were off he pulled me up so I was standing inches in front of his kneeling form which caused me to blush slightly. He gently unlatched the buckle around my thigh, running his hand up my leg as he did so, before unclipping it from around my waist as well. Pulling my leather knife off my hip too he stood up and pushed my jacket off my shoulders as well.

"Uhm Jaxon, what are you doing?" I sputtered out, now flushed at his actions. I wasn't used to his hands being so, well, all over me…. not that I wanted to complain.

Satisfied that I was ready for whatever task he had come up with he started to pull me into the shallow steam. I stopped at the waters edge and shook my head at him.

"Are you crazy?" I asked him refusing to go any further. The water wasn't all that deep at the top of the waterfall but that was besides the point - I couldn't go wading fully clothed!

Jaxon just rolled his eyes and walked back over to me.

"You need to trust me," he told me as he looked down and smiled softly.

"I do," I replied. "But…"

I didn't get a chance to formulate my argument because in a swift motion he bent down and picked me up quickly, causing me to wrap my legs around his waist so I wouldn't fall backwards. Without another word he waded back into the river, obviously not as bothered by the biting cold water as I was. Once we reached the edge of the waterfall he stopped and let me stand on my own as we peered down into the lake below.

"Jump," he suggested nodding down to the lake. I immediately shook my head. Nope.

"Can you swim?" he asked.

"Not well," I admitted.

"I won't let you drown," he promised, locking his eyes with mine. He stood up out of the water and onto the rocks at the edge of the waterfall, offering his hand he helped pull me up next to him. "Forget about today and just jump - trust me."

Looking down at the water I gulped. It seemed offly high. But with Jaxon looking at me expectantly I gave in.

"Jump with me?" I asked hopefully with my hand extended out towards him. He nodded and laced his fingers in mine. Taking one last look at Jaxon I pushed off the rocks.

For a moment once I hit the water I had lost Jaxon's hand, which caused me to panic. But within a second he was next to me pulling me up to the surface. Taking a deep breath of air I started laughing, the adrenalin in my system pushing away the negative feelings from earlier.

"I guess that wasn't so bad," I admitted as Jaxon wrapped my arms around his neck so I could use him as a floatie. He moved us over so were in a shallower spot of the lake - which I could now tell was a hot spring. It was shallow enough for me to stand now, but I continued to rest against Jaxon, content being wrapped around him momentarily. As his hands settled on my back I took it as a sign that he didn't mind either.

"What is this place?" I asked him curiously as I leaned my head back to get my hair wet again.

"A hot water lake," he explained simply. "I come here after hunts sometimes to relax."

I could see why, the water was a nice change of pace from the typical freezing temperatures of the surrounding rivers - like the one that fed into the spring. It must act as a natural temperature regulator I mused before turning my attention back to Jaxon.

"Thank you for bringing me here," I thanked him quietly, my fingers playing with his hair absentmindedly. His eyes darkened slightly when I accidently tugged it a little harder than I had meant to and with a brief glance down his lips met mine.

I met his passion and slipped out a small moan when he ran his hand up my back to entangle his fingers in my hair. At the sound he only increased his attention, his mouth kissing down my jaw and settling on my neck. I gasped again when he found a sensitive spot just below my ear.

"Oh god Jaxon," I whimpered before pulling him back up so I could kiss him properly. I found feel him smirking against me so I bit and pulled at his lip playfully causing him to groan in response. I gasped when he pushed me up against a rock, I hadn't even realized we were moving. Taking advantage of my surprise he slipped his tongue into my mouth, we both moaned at the contact.

After a few minutes I pulled back for air realizing just how out breath I was. I studied him as I tried to even out my breathing realizing again just how ruggedly attractive he was. I furrowed my brow as I thought about how many women would probably actually kill to be in the spot I was with him. I wonder if relationships work the same way on Earth as they did in space?

"What's on your mind," he asked gently, apparently sensing my internal debate. He was good at that. I blushed slightly not sure how to bring up what I wanted to ask.

"What is this?" I asked shyly motioning to us and everything around. He looked confused for a second … maybe that was the wrong thing to ask?

"A lake?" he responded, causing me to laugh.

"No I mean, like, what are we? I'm not sure how relationships work down here, but in the Arc usually when two people like each other they start dating and become girlfriend and boyfriend and stuff like that. So are we dating, or boyfriend/girlfriend…." I told him, cutting my rambling short after seeing the amused look on his face.

"You could call it that if you wanted," he replied.

"What would you call it?" I countered, not sure how to interpret his answer. It was a real possibility that this would mean nothing to him, I was just some girl who fell from the sky. But I hoped it was something more than that.

He tightened his grip around my waist and moved one hand to cup my face gently, "I would call you mine. And I am yours. I don't care what words you use for it."

He leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to my lips, passionate in an entirely different way than our makeout session moments before. I couldn't help but smile against his lips.

We stayed in the hot spring and swam around for a while longer but got out before the sun started to disappear from the sky completely. Gathering our stuff from the top of the waterfall we walked back to the village side by side in a comfortable silence.

There was a roaring bonfire back at the village that I instantly moved closer to - my clothes still slightly damp and sticky. Jaxon moved over to sit next to Nyko, Artigas, Penn, and some other warriors I recognized - grabbing us both food on his way. I smiled and raised my hands out to the fire to warm them up quicker, I was eager to join my friends but wanted to at least be rid of this chill before I did so.

My smile widened as Lucas moved up next to me nudging me slightly in greeting.

"How are you holding up?" he asked delicately. His soft tone caused me to freeze for a second, I had almost forgotten about the trial from the afternoon, how strange.

"I'm alright," I answered honestly, my voice light as I shrugged as well.

"Are you sure?" he questioned, obviously thinking I was holding something back.

"Yeah Lucas, I promise. I'm alright," I assured him as I turned around so the fire would warm my back. I glanced over at the group I was waiting to join and saw Jaxon watching us carefully, well, watching Lucas carefully that is. I just rolled my eyes. Somethings are exactly the same on Earth as they were on the Arc.

"If you need anything I'm here," he offered. I did a once over on my jacket and pants, content that I was now mostly dry before responding.

"Thank you Lucas, I appreciate it. But really, I'm fine," I told him, leaving no room for argument in my tone. "I'm going to go eat with the others, would you like to join?"

He hesitated before refusing, "I'm actually already eating with some of the others from the stable. I was actually going to see if you wanted to join us."

I smiled but shook my head, looking over at my group of friends who were now all looking up and staring at us.

"Not tonight, but thanks," I replied. He gave me a quick hug before leaving to join his own group. Now thoroughly warm I made my way over to the others, pleased that Keller and Indra had joined them as well. Taking a seat next to Jaxon, I wordlessly accept the plate he offered and listened to a story that Penn was telling excitedly.

Warm, full and surrounded by friends - this was something I could get used to.

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><p><strong> Well there ya go! Got a little extra back story on Delano, or at least an explanation on why he looks like he does in the 100 series! And a little history on Cole in the Arc with John (who may or may not be a part of the original 100). This one was bit harder to write without it getting too dark or too sweet, but it is what it is. <strong>

**Please continue to favorite/follow/review! **


	19. The Other Ones

**Author note at the beginning of the story this time. After some deliberation I have decided that I am going to start merging my world with the 100 Series, but I'm going to do it my way which hopefully you'll still love and I can somehow manage without feeling stifled. This chapter does get a little _lemony/steamy/mildly T rated_. Nothing to heavy, just some quality bonding time. Also, _anything in italics i_n this chapter (_and every chapter hereout_) is to let you know that they are speaking their native grounder language - because while I can interpret some, I am not a master conaloger =] **

**Without further ado, please enjoy this chapter and continue to review! I love, love, love hearing your thoughts about the characters and the story overall!**

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><p>"Looks like something is making off with your kill Penn," I called out, eyeing the large two foot bird trying to make quick work of the deer he had just killed. I heard him groan from beside me.<p>

"Shoot the damn bird Cole before it ruins dinner," he replied untangling the rope he brought along. I rolled my eyes and reached for one of my arrows. I had the day off from the healer's building and jumped on the chance to go hunting with Penn when he offered. Unfortunately for me, he had injured his shoulder while sparing and it was throwing off his aim a bit off which made him crankier than Indra in the morning.

"If you had any arrows left you could be doing this yourself," I teased. He mumbled something under his breath and made his way toward the deer. Notching my arrow I released it after taking a second to aim, not wanting to wait too long less it attack Penn and make him even grumpier. My arrow embedded itself in the bird's throat, dropping it in an instant. I smiled as I jogged to catch up to Penn.

"That makes me four for four today," I beamed brightly, proud of my own success. Sure, two of the four hadn't even been moving but I wasn't going to let technicalities ruin my mood. Penn just grumbled some more. Ignoring him I went over to the bird, pulling my arrow out carefully so I could reuse it. The bird itself was about two feet tall and had a wingspan that was at least double. Its feathers were a bright white with black intermixed, altogether normal looking except for the six talons on one claw. The clan didn't eat owls, but we could use its feathers and talons so I tied its feet together and hoisted it over my shoulder.

"You know if you would let me take a look at your shoulder it probably wouldn't hurt so much," I offered to Penn for at least the hundredth time. And like all the times before he just shook his head.

"I'm fine," he grunted back, ignoring the pain as he put the deer across his shoulders. I sighed but followed beside him anyways not understanding why he was being so stubborn.

"So do you know what the tribune is meeting about?" I asked Penn. Jaxon had left this morning in a hurry once a messenger arrived alerting him of some urgent meeting, but he hadn't told me what it was about. Nyko was also called in, which was part of the reason I had the day off.

"No, I'm not part of the tribune," Penn sassed back with a hint of a smirk on his face. Grumpy or not, Penn was still Penn.

"But I would guess it has something to do with that rider from the southern clan that came in this morning," he continued.

"What rider? What would the southern clan want from us?" I asked in quick succession, not really giving him time to answer. But this was the first time I had heard of anyone from outside our clan making contact with us, it seemed strange.

"I'm not sure. I'm out hunting with you, not sitting in on the meeting remember?" he replied. I rolled my eyes and nudged his shoulder, making sure it was the non-injured one.

"You love hunting with me," I teased, knowing very well that I was a bad hunting partner despite my decent aim.

"Please, Lyndon can move around the forest quieter than you can and he's only two," Penn joked back. I had picked up on a lot of skills since I had landed here, but stealth was not among them.

"Speaking of which, you sure have been spending a lot of time with Lyndon and Keller lately," I said changing the subject. Penn coughed slightly and looked away for a moment to hide what I was sure was a faint blush. I was already more than aware of their progressing relationship - Keller had quickly become one of my best friends and we shared everything with each other - but I just couldn't resist putting Penn in an awkward situation.

"Yeah I guess," he admitted after a moment. "She's nice."

"Keller is fantastic," I agreed. "And Lyndon is adorable. I think you would be good for them, for both of them."

"You really think so?" he asked, his tone hopeful. I moved ahead of him quickly cutting him off by standing directly in front of him.

"Penn you're a great guy and a wonderful father-figure to that little monster," I told him honestly, making him smile a little. "But know that if you hurt Keller I will hunt you down and castrate you."

Satisfied by his confused and slightly worried expression I turned around and started walking back to the village. I had no doubt that Penn would be good to Keller, but what kind of friend would I be if I didn't threaten him at least once?

"I'm not sure what that means … I'm not sure that I even want to," he said quietly as he caught up to me. I laughed and shook my head.

"Trust me, you don't," I told him. "But you can ask Nyko if you're really curious."

"No, I think I'll just take your word," Penn answered.

"Good call," I replied, cutting our conversation short once I caught sight of the village. We wordlessly dropped off our kills at the butchers, taking what pieces we wanted before putting the rest in storage for the clan. I had only kept a few of the feathers and owl talons for myself, curious if I could make some sort of necklace out of them. After that, Penn and I went our separate ways - he presumingly to see Keller while I made my way towards the stables. Seeing as how the majority of my favorite clansmen were holding a secret meeting I had decided to visit Lucas instead to pass time.

I found him in the stalls brushing down one of the two-faced horses. Calling out to him, I picked up a carrot on my way in and stood by the stable door of Jaxon's horse - the only one I trusted not to eat my hand off.

"Cole! I wasn't expecting you," he replied after a minute, wiping the sweat off his forehead as he popped out of the stall window.

"I know, I figured I would surprise you," I told him, smiling as the horse's tongue gently cleaned my hand looking for more treats.

"Not saving lives today?" he joked, moving out of the stall and hanging the supplies on the wall nearby.

"Not today, tribune was called into some important meeting so everything's pretty quiet right now," I answered wiping my hands on my dark green pants.

"What's going on?" he asked curiously. I just shrugged my shoulders in response.

"Something about a rider from the southern clan?" I told him, repeating what Penn had told me. Lucas froze for a second before nodding slightly.

"That would explain the extra horse we have in the pen right now," he said motioning out the door. Again I just shrugged, southern clans weren't any of my business.

"It's probably nothing," I answered as we both walked out of the stables. A group of others from the Arc were sitting around a pit eating lunch with a few of the villagers scattered in. Lucas greeted them as we walked up, introducing me to each of them. I hadn't done very well at keeping up with the others from the drop ship I realized. I knew that they were doing alright, heard of certain advancements they had made from time to time, but Lucas was the only one I talked to on a regular basis. I felt a pang of guilt for a moment when I realized that I was more of an outsider to my own people than I was the woods clan.

"Cole are you listening?" Lucas' voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I shook my head, embarrassed to be caught distracted.

"No sorry, I sort of zoned out for a second. The hunt was more taxing than I thought," I lied easily, taking a seat next to Lucas. The others just stared at me curiously before one of the women spoke up.

"You went on a hunt? Aren't you a doctor?" she asked. Her tone wasn't accusing, but it was far from friendly.

"Uh, yeah I had the day off and Penn offered to take me with him," I answered, noting their confused looks. "Why is that weird?"

"You just seem to fit in well with them," she supplied. "Maybe a little too well? I mean you spend all of your meals with them after working all day with that other healer, and we all heard about that savage 'trial' where you blinded that guy … It's like you're one of them now."

"I am," I replied, angry at what she was implying. "We all are. We all became part of this clan when they decided to let us live here instead of killing us all. And so what if I spend time with them? They are my friends, just like Lucas is and I spend time with him too - I don't get why it is such a big deal."

"Because we aren't like them," she argued. "We aren't savages."

"How dare you?" I accused, standing up and narrowing my eyes at her. "They protect you, feed you and house you and this is the respect you show? They could have easily killed us all when we got here, or did you forget that?"

I turned and walked away, not waiting for her to answer. The village had done so much for them, for us, why couldn't they see that? Why couldn't they just be grateful?

"Cole! Cole wait up," Lucas called from behind me. I slowed my steps but didn't stop walking.

"Cole please, just stop. Wait for a minute," he pleaded, grabbing my hand. "Come on, she didn't mean it like that."

"Then what did she mean?" I spat at him, not caring that he wasn't even the person I was angry at in the first place.

"Its just been harder for some of us to adjust here than it has been for you," he explained, sighing when I narrowed my eyes at him. Easy was not an adjective I would use to describe my time on Earth - not by any stretch of the term.

"I adapted so I could survive," I seethed at him. "This hasn't been easy for anyone, especially not me."

"I know Cole, I'm sorry," Lucas apologized. "You aren't the only one who has acclimated either, others have found their place here to - Amber just isn't one of them."

"Well that isn't my fault," I replied, ignoring the fact that I sounded like a pouting child. It had hurt to hear her talk about my friends that way, to hear her take them for granted.

"I know, I know," Lucas said gently. "It's no one's fault but her own. She's probably just jealous of you."

"What? Why?" I asked puzzled, as I let go of my anger. Why would someone be jealous of me?

"She's probably jealous about how well you fit in. I mean look at you," Lucas said, motioning at me. "This life suits you. You found your place, people here like you plus all your new muscles and war paint makes you look fierce - how could she not be jealous."

I rolled my eyes but smiled at Lucas anyways. He had a knack for making me feel better.

"Hey, I'm serious about that war paint," he said with a smile.

"It's Jaxon's doing," I admitted, blushing slightly at the intimate memory.

"Of course it was," Lucas replied slightly scowling now. I had noticed his apprehension about Jaxon before but never had a reason to address it. I didn't understand it in the first place. I thought about telling him about me and Jaxon, but the unamused look in his eyes made me bite my tongue. I could always tell him later...

"What exactly did I do?" a voice questioned from behind us. Walking up was none other than the man himself. I smiled as he approached and I could hear Lucas groan quietly.

"This," I answered, motioning to my face. It was painted in the same style that I had donned at Delano's trial. Jaxon just nodded in understanding but didn't respond right away. Instead he turned his gaze to Lucas who seemed to be agitated now.

"I need to speak to Cole alone," he told Lucas shortly, making it clear that there wasn't going to be discussion on it. Lucas sighed but nodded and left after saying goodbye to me.

"So this better be important if you're running off all of my friends," I told him, falling into step beside him.

"Something's bothering you," he told me, ignoring my comment. He stopped walking and placed his hand on my neck so I would look up at him.

"That's why you interrupted us? Because you think something is bothering me?" I asked incredulously.

"No," he answered shortly. "But it is clear that something happened and that it's bothering you, I was merely curious as to what that might be."

"It was nothing," I responded, looking away from him. "Just got into a disagreement with a woman from the Arc. It's nothing serious though, what did you need to talk to me about?"

Jaxon rubbed his thumb against my cheek softly before pulling away and motioning for me to follow him.

"Does this have to do with the tribune being called together this morning?" I asked him after walking in silence for a few minutes. He nodded.

"Does it have anything to do with that rider from the southern clan that everyone has been talking about?" I followed up. Jaxon tensed slightly but kept moving.

"Yes," he answered shortly. We stopped just short of one of the biggest buildings in the village. It was often used for special events, but doubled as a strategy room for the tribune as well. It must be where they met this morning I pieced together, still trying to figure out why we were here now though.

"What's going on?" I questioned looking up at Jaxon. He just stared back at me, his expression unreadable. Moving closer he put his hands on each side of my face and kissed me tenderly. I grabbed the edges of his coat jacket to pull him closer to me but he pulled back in an instant and straightened himself. Confused I looked up at him trying to figure out why he was acting so strange. Giving nothing away he turned and walked towards the building and I followed him in.

Inside the tribune was gathered around a large oval table. I recognized everyone present except for one warrior - he must be the rider from the other clan. Jaxon moved around the table and took his spot beside Indra and Tristan. Slowly I moved up to the closest edge of the table, careful to keep my expression neutral and my curiosity hidden - this was official clan business, not an informal gathering that was clear to see.

"_This is her?" _the unknown warrior asked, defaulting to their native language. Indra nodded in response. The man looked me up and down, sizing me up. I was suddenly glad that I had decided to go hunting today, or I would have looked a lot less impressive in my apron sans war paint.

"_She looks weak,"_ the man told her, eyeing me with distrust. I noticed Jaxon just barely lift his head at the comment, and in my peripheral I could see Nyko shaking his head ever so slightly. Apparently this man's opinion of me mattered.

"_Ai na sen yu in,"_ I told the stranger, glaring at him. He looked surprised that I could both understand and use their language. I was far from fluent, understanding way more than I could speak, but he didn't need to know that.

"What they lack in strength they make up in wit," Indra spoke up, switching back into English. Wait, what did she mean by they?

"I see," the man answered. "So sky girl tell me. You wear our clothes, eat our food, speak our language and heal our people, but do your loyalties lie with us or your sky people?"

"My loyalties are to my friends, who are both from the sky and from Earth," I answered honestly not understanding what this was all about.

"Do you consider this your home?" he asked. I nodded immediately.

"Yes," I answered, absolute with response.

"And would you fight to protect it? To protect your … friends?" he followed up. I nodded again.

"Yes."

"Even from your own people?" he questioned, causing everyone in the room to tense. I didn't break eye contact with the man though.

"No one here would attack anyone in this village - this is our home now too," I told him, hoping to quell all fears of one of our people attacking the clan. There was no way that I would ever let that happen. Like Lucas had said, for the most part everyone had adapted to life here and it wasn't like any of us were in a big hurry to run off into the forest to fend for ourselves.

"What is this about?" I questioned, turning to face Indra, Jaxon and Nyko hoping they would give me some answers. "You don't seriously think that any of us from the drop ship would attack the village do you?"

"No," Nyko answered hesitantly.

"Then what's going on?" I pressed. Why wouldn't anyone give me a straight answer?

"We need to be sure of where your loyalties and the others from the sky are at," Jaxon supplied. I narrowed my eyes.

"You know where mine are at," I growled.

"Yes, but what of the others you came with," the man from the south questioned.

"We have been living here for months, and in that time we have integrated into the village. Worked together to bring about the best of both of our worlds, why would that stop now?" I answered.

"What if there were others? Others here from your home in the sky?" Nyko asked.

What was that supposed to mean? There were no others …. unless they had found the original 100. But they were dropped too far away from us, we had attempted to find them in the first few weeks we had landed but radar within 50 miles had turned up nothing.

"What do you mean others?" I asked, confused by all the seemingly random questioning.

"Quint came riding in this morning to deliver a message from their leader Anya," Jaxon explained. "They are requesting aid for an upcoming battle."

"Against who?" I questioned. Reapers and Mountain Men were the two most common enemies I knew the clans faced, but was there something to the south that was even more dangerous? I had been told that we were lucky in this village, that we had defeated the reapers in the area some time ago and were outside the reach of the Mountain Men so talks of war were new to me.

"Against sky people," the unknown man answered.

"What?" I questioned dumbly. I had heard what he said, but it wasn't registering in my brain.

"Quint says that a group of sky people landed a few miles from their village. They have killed many of their warriors already and are now on the verge of war," Indra said solemnly. "We are going to offer them aid, and would like to bring you and some of the others with us to utilize your skills - but we need to make sure that if we do that, that you won't turn your backs on us."

I swallowed the lump in my throat. So they had found the others. Maybe there was just some big misunderstanding - thinking back to our first week on Earth it was easy to see how that could happen.

"Have you tried to make peace with them?" I asked, turning my question to the man Indra called Quint.

"Our leader has agreed to meet with theirs to talk, but they have made it clear that they can not be trusted," Quint said.

"We should try to talk to them," I told the group "You should let me try to talk to them."

"So you do wish to rejoin your people!" Quint accused, causing everyone in the room to tense up.

"No!" I answered just as vehemently. "If it ends in war, if they insist upon killing then I will stand with this clan until the end. But that doesn't mean it has to end that way. If this is the other group of 100, then they're just kids. If we can talk to them, if I can talk to them and show them that coexistence is possible then we might be able to avoid pointless bloodshed."

"And if we can't?" Jaxon spoke up, looking directly at me. This is why he was worried earlier, he wasn't sure what my answer would be.

"Then we go to war," I told him, not breaking eye contact. These were my people now. The Arc had left me to die, I owed them nothing. I just hoped that I could convince the other 100 that we were all on the same side on the ground.

"Then it is settled," Quint spoke from my left. "My leader will want to know of this development as soon as possible, gather what you need tonight and we will ride out at first light."

With that he turned and left, leaving me alone with the tribune. Jaxon and Nyko walked me out as Indra and the others stayed behind to discuss plans for the village. With the way the clan was set up everyone was going to have to move, but the southern clan needed warriors now. All of the fighters would have to leave in the morning and the rest of the village would pack up and trail behind - it wasn't ideal and left our group largely unprotected but it wasn't my call to make.

"I will gather all the medical supplies and get a pack ready for you as well," Nyko said. "Make sure to grab everything you will need in an emergency from your home - I will have someone else collect everything else from your home later."

"I'm riding out with you guys in the morning?" I asked. I knew that I was inevitably coming along, but thought I would be going with the village, not with the warriors.

"Yes," he answered. "If there is a chance for peace then it must be made before things get worse. You and a few others from your sky clan will be joining us as well. We will ride hard and fast, so be prepared."

Nyko left at that, making his way to the healer's building. He would know better as to which supplies we would need and I trusted him to not leave anything behind. Pushing my growing nervousness aside I looked up at Jaxon who was staring at me blankly.

"Would now be a bad time to tell you that I don't know how to ride a horse?" I joked lamely. It did get him to smirk a little though.

"You will be riding with me, so no worries," he reassured me. We walked back to my home and he watched me pack in silence, only occasionally suggesting items that I should take or leave behind.

"I'm scared," I blurted out after a long silence. I immediately regretted it.

"I'm sorry, I know that makes me weak, but …" I tried to explain before he interrupted me.

"Being scared doesn't make you weak, running away and acting cowardly does," he explained. "If you are having second thoughts about going, about fighting against your people…"

"No, thats not it," I said, interrupting him this time. "They aren't me people anymore."

I moved closer to him and stood in between his legs, wrapping my hands around his neck to play with his hair in a way I knew he enjoyed. He placed his hands on my waist gently letting his fingers sneak underneath my top to caress my skin softly.

"I'm scared that they won't listen, sky people have a tendency to be pretty stubborn if you haven't noticed," I joked lightly while revealing my deeper fears. "I'm scared of what is going to happen - I'm scared that you're going to get hurt. That all the people here that I care about might get hurt."

Jaxon pulled me towards him so he could wrap his arms around my back.

"They might," he admitted, his eyes searching out my own. "War is bloody and people will die. But you don't have to worry about me, that I promise."

"How can you say that for sure though?" I asked, looking down at him sadly.

"Because I can't die," he said with a lopsided smile. "Who would take care of you and keep you out of trouble?"

"Someone's got to do it," I replied laughing at him and telling myself that everything was going to be okay over and over in my head.

"Yes, and it will always be me," he responded seriously pulling me down towards him so I straddled his lap.

Leaning forward he kissed me wildly, rougher than he had earlier but I found myself enjoying it nonetheless. Tightening my fingers in his hair he growled and pulled me even closer running his tongue along my lower lip as his hands explored further up my back. Opening my my mouth for him I almost moaned as his tongue started to fight for dominance with mine.

I threw my head back unable to contain my groan of pleasure as his mouth moved lower down my neck, stopping every few kisses to bite and suck gently. As he stopped on a particularly sensitive spot I bucked my hips against his as I felt his teeth graze my skin. Jaxon let out another deep growl that I was starting to love more and more and instantly stood up, locking my legs around his waist. He moved us forward towards my pallet of furs, his mouth never leaving my neck as he explored down my neck and the top of my chest.

As he knelt and laid me down on the furs he just stayed kneeling above me looking down at me lustfully. Sitting up slightly I ran my hand from his hips up his sides, dipping my hands underneath his shirt so I could feel his warmth and lean muscles. As I pulled my hands back down his sides I let my fingernails scratch into his skin gently, nowhere near hard enough to injure but just enough to feel the pressure. His low growl let me know that he was enjoying this as much as I was. In a second he had me pressed down on my back again as he crashed his lips onto mine, biting and sucking playfully as he ran his hands up underneath my shirt.

We both groaned when a voice from outside my door interrupted us.

"Uhm, Cole?" Artigas' voice called from the doorway. "Is Jaxon in there with you? Indra and Tristan are looking for him - something about making plans for the morning?"

I sighed and looked down at Jaxon who had his face buried in my neck and his hands still resting on my ribs. We both knew he couldn't blow them off, it was too important. But at the same time, neither of us wanted to stop. This was the most heated we had been with each other so far and both of our grasps on our self control were waning.

"Tell them I'm on my way," Jaxon called out, sitting up but not moving off of me.

"You're beautiful you know that?" Jaxon said quietly as he looked down at me softly.

He had made it perfectly clear on how he felt about me, but he hadn't complimented me so openly before. I smiled and sat up to kiss him gently.

"Think you'll make it back before dark?" I asked as I pulled away from him. He shook his head. Knowing Indra, everything would have to be perfectly planned before she would be content enough to call it a night. And Jaxon still had to pack for himself. So much for a night of romance I mused.

"I'll be here when you wake up," he promised as he stood up and gathered his belongings before disappearing out my door.

I laid back down trying to ignore the burning desire in my body Jaxon had started and the build up of nerves that was starting to seep back in. I could only guess at the possible outcomes of what would happen we got to the southern clan. I hoped that we could resolve everything peacefully, but something told me that it wasn't going to be that easy.

* * *

><p><em>Ai na sen yu in - I can hear you.<em>


	20. Game Plan

I woke up to Jaxon kneeling next to me and I couldn't help but smile up at him. He moved a piece of hair from my face before smiling softly back.

"It's time," he told me, rocking back on his heels and standing up. Yawning I followed suit, stretching to wake up my muscles as I did so. I noticed that he had brought a small lantern into my home, it must still be dark outside then.

I moved over to my pack and picked up the clothes I had set aside. Wordlessly I changed into a pair of dark tight pants and a long sleeved dark grey shirt not caring that Jaxon was watching me the entire time. I frowned slightly as I looked down at my clothes, the shirt had been almost too tight when I had first arrived, now it hung loosely on my frame - I wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

I pushed it out of my mind though and slipped a brown leather belt around my waist before pulling on a matching pair of boots. I buckled my pack around my leg before tightening it around my waist and let my knife fall on the other side of my hip. Looking up at Jaxon he motioned for me to come closer to him.

I stood still as he painted my face, a task he always insisted on doing himself. Once he was finished I turned to look in the mirror. I easily would fit in with the clan, but I looked nowhere near as fearsome as Jaxon did behind me.

He forewent a mask unlike most of the others - it seemed like many of the tribune leaders did the same, she would have to remember to ask him about it later. He had his face painted though, similar to how it had been at the last tribune meeting, and he added feathers and bone pieces to his hair. Typically only wearing light layers, he was dressed to fight today wearing a thick dark leather vest under a heavy dark green jacket that had plating around his forearms. He had his sword hanging from his waist on one side and a smaller knife on the other. Knowing him those probably weren't the only weapons he was carrying I thought to myself.

He turned me to face him and looked me over. Grabbing something from beside the table he strapped a leather bracer onto my arm that would protect me from the blowback of my bow. I had yet to get one for myself and I was surprised that he had thought of it. He also tucked a smaller knife into my boots before stepping back.

"Put this on as well," he told me handing me a bundle of dark navy fabric. Unraveling it I saw that it was a heavier hooded jacket. Shrugging it on it fit comfortably, tight enough in the arms and shoulders to not get in the way of my bow, but not tight enough to restrict my movements. It was a little longer in the back than in the front, falling just past my butt and I admired it as I turned back around to take a look at the mirror.

Zipping the jacket closed I turned back to the warrior and smiled at him.

"Thank you," I said, honestly in love with the jacket. He nodded and moved closer to me until I was pressed up against the dresser.

He put his hands on my hips and leaned down to kissed me fervently and I responded in kind. After a moment he pulled away though and rested his forehead against mine.

"Stay close to me or one of the others at all times," he said quietly. "The southern clan is much different than our own and they are already going to be suspicious of you once we arrive."

"Okay," I responded, I had expected as much.

"They have their own set of rules and customs," he continued. "But above all do not let them push you around - you can not be viewed as weak. Everyone here knows your strength, you will have to prove yourself all over again once we arrive though."

"I can do that," I told him, preparing for the journey ahead. I knew nothing about this was going to be easy and I was determined not to make the same mistakes that I had when I had first landed.

"I will do what I can to protect you," he promised, his hands on my waist tightening slightly. "But things will be chaotic."

"I know," I replied trying to ease his tension. It wouldn't do him any good to be distracted and worried about me the whole time.

"We can do this," I reassured him. "I can do this. I'm not the weak little sky girl who could barely find her way out of a drop ship anymore."

"No, you are not," he agreed. "But you are still my sky girl."

I smiled and nodded. Jaxon was more sensitive and open when it was just me and him alone and I cherished the small moments like these between us. I knew that once we walked out of the door that everything would have to change. He would be focused on the task at hand and take his rightful spot as one of the leaders of the clan and couldn't afford to be so open. I steeled myself for the task at hand knowing that I would have to do the same.

"Let's go, we've waited long enough," he said turning to walk out, making sure that I was following. I picked up my pack after strapping my bow and quiver around my back and trailed behind him. I didn't look back at, consigned that I was going to be leaving the only home I had known since I had landed on Earth. We would be back I reassured myself, though I knew if we ever got the chance to return that nothing would be the same.

"Jaxon, Cole," Nyko greeted as we approached. Artigas was posted next to him holding the reigns of both their horses with a serious expression. I was worried for an instant, thinking that Artigas would be caught up in the middle of everything when he was so young but he had taught me a lot of what I knew about fighting, I would have to trust that he would be alright. I smiled slightly anyways at him and he winked back.

"We will be riding straight through," Nyko explained, more for my sake I figured than Jaxons. "Once we arrive come find me, we will need to set up a medical base and take an inventory of all our supplies."

I nodded in response. We were going to need a fully stocked triage center if things turned ugly, and it would be best to get it ready early and be safe rather than sorry later. Nyko gave me a quick run down on the supplies he had packed, motioning to the two full looking packs tied to the side of his horse. Suddenly Indra appeared and yelled out an order and everyone started to move to their respective steeds and mount up. Guess this was it.

I turned to find Jaxon standing next to Penn and Tristan and made my over to them. Jaxon finished securing his bag, having already seen to mine, and hoisted himself onto the beast. Unlike some of the other riders Jaxon never saddled his horse, just tied a series of blankets on its back instead. Saddles were few and far between, difficult to make, and a waste of leather he had told me once. But they would have made this far easier for me I thought to myself as I evaluated how the hell I was supposed to get behind him. Jaxon had almost a half a foot on me so I wasn't going to be able to pull the same trick he had.

"Here Cole," Penn said interrupting my scheming. He knelt down beside Jaxon and cupped his hands together and I looked at him strangely, what was that supposed to accomplish?

"Put your foot here," he explained motioning to his clasped hands with his head. "I'll hoist you up and all you'll have to do is swing your leg over."

I had faced down a saber cat, adapted to a tribe of warriors and gouged out a man's eye with a scalpel but jumping onto the back of the horse was possibly one of the scariest things I had done thus far. Far less chance of death and a greater risk of injury. Groaning I knew that I didn't have a choice though.

I put my foot in the cup of his hands and steadied myself for what was about to happen, biting back a small shriek as I was lifted up suddenly.

Well, I'm not dead yet I thought sarcastically as I settled myself on the back of the horse slightly uncomfortable with how wide it was.

"Hold on," Jaxon commanded quietly as the horse started to move forward. Not needing to be told twice I wrapped my arms around his waist and prepared myself for a long trip.

* * *

><p>Long was an understatement I thought to myself as I buried my hands underneath Jaxon's jacket for warmth. We had made our last pit stop an hour ago and were now almost to our destination. The trip had long ceased being enjoyable after the first of several stops. At this point my legs were sore, my back hurt, and I was exhausted. The pitch blackness of the forest letting me know that it was far past midnight now. But as we cleared a patch of trees I saw lights in the distance - at least we were close.<p>

As we reached the camp I threw my hood up to shadow my face, the longer they didn't realize I was a sky person the better. We rode through the town silently and I took in as much of the surroundings as I could see. This clan was much bigger I noticed, that or other clans had arrived before us - it was impossible to tell in the dark. Only once we reached the center of the camp where a row of torches had been lit did we stop.

Indra was the first of us to dismount though everyone quickly followed suit. I winced slightly as I landed on the ground roughly, my thighs were so sore. Jaxon handed the reigns to a warrior nearby before moving to stand in line with Indra, Tristan and Nyko.

"Welcome," a voice called out from ahead of us. A woman walked out from the building in front of us flanked by a group of warriors in full battle gear. She had a flat bridge, high cheekbones and thin lips - this must be Anya I concluded. She definitely had a much different look than our clan.

"We are thankful for your help in this difficult time," she continued. "Please, get settled. What is ours is now yours."

Jaxon followed Indra and Nyko back into the building Anya had just appeared from, apparently they were going to waste no time in preparing a strategy. Sighing I turned to the warrior next to me, a man I recognized but was not familiar with.

"Give me Nyko's supplies," I told him, not knowing which of the group of beasts was the healers. He said nothing but unhooked two large saddle bags and handed them to me. I grunted under their weight - what the hell had Nyko packed? Rocks? I grabbed my bag off the back of Jaxon's horse and turned back to the warrior.

"Do you know where the healer's building is here?" I asked him again hopefully but he just shrugged.

Great. I readjusted the bags throwing one over my shoulder and tucking the other two under my arms tightly. Picking a direction where it seemed most of our party was heading I followed behind them. Apparently a group of warriors from this clan were giving out living arrangements and directing people to where they needed to go - well at least that was helpful.

I approached one of them, careful to keep my head tilted down so my hood would shadow my face.

"Healer's building?" I asked keeping my voice low. The warrior said nothing but stared at me strangely. Maybe their fighters didn't speak English. I cursed my luck.

"_Healer's building?"_ I tried again hoping my accent didn't come off as strange.

"_To the south, marked with a red circle," _he answered after a moment. Not waiting for him to ask questions I took off in the direction I thought was south. It wasn't long until I found the marker he had mentioned. The building was old and constructed out of concrete and much larger than the one we had before. Noticing that lights were flickering from inside I made my way in wanting to set the packs down as soon as possible.

No one was inside even though the place was well lit with lanterns. I scanned the area quickly, trying to figure out the best way to arrange the room. There were a line of cots on both sides of the walls with a metal table pushed against the furthest one. It would have to do for now. I started unpacking the bags and organizing all of the supplies Nyko had brought. Tools, medicine, bandages, poisons, antidotes and the small leftover supplies from the Arc med kits were all lined out in front of me - he really had brought everything he could.

It had taken me some time to sort through everything and I was still distracted when Nyko walked in not long after I had finished.

"You found everything alright?" he asked looking over my organization system to familiarize where everything was again.

"Yes," I responded, pausing before turning to ask him about something that had been bothering me. "Do the warriors here speak English?"

"Yes, though the villagers may not," he replied looking at me curiously.

"Oh alright," I said, storing away that information. I wonder why the warrior had acted so strange when I had asked him for directions then? A problem for a different time I realized as I started to yawn.

"Where are we staying while we're here?" I questioned, ready to be off my feet and sink into a pallet of furs.

"I am staying with Indra," he answered.

"Oh really now?" I asked with a smile growing on my face. He shot me a look that told me not to push my luck.

"Fine, where does that leave me?" I followed up, letting him get away with that slip for now. I made a mental note to store that information for later though, it would definitely come in handy.

"Find Penn or one of the others and stay with them," he suggested. "The tribune have been settled in a different part of camp so staying with Jaxon right now is not an option, but you need to stay with someone you trust. This village will not be safe for you if things don't go according to plan."

I sighed but nodded in agreement. Making sure I had my personal bag I made my way out of my new work station and went back to where I had saw our clan last. Luckily for me the loud mouth that was Penn was not difficult to track down. Moving next to him I nudged him with my shoulder causing him to look down and grin at me.

"Have an extra bed?" I asked with a hopeful grin. He pretended to think about it before nodding.

"Yeah, come on I'll show you where we'll be at," he instructed moving into one of the buildings not far from the bonfire outside. He halted suddenly once he passed the door frame causing me to almost run into him.

"I thought you said the other bed was empty," Penn asked, his voice sounding much harsher than his typical carefree tone. Moving to his side I could see the two warriors he was talking to. Three beds, four people - I wasn't liking the math on this one. I was going to leave and try to find someone else I recognized but Penn's grip on my wrist stopped me from going anywhere.

"It was, now its not," one of the warriors answered plainly. "He'll have to find somewhere else to stay, or sleep by the fire like the others."

Yeah, sleeping outside in a group of bloodthirsty warriors who hate the very thought of me … So not happening.

"She'll stay here," Penn replied causing the other man to look up at him amused.

"Have it your way, but she sleeps with you. Cots are small enough," he said. Penn nodded and walked over to the cot on the far side of the room. The building itself wasn't very big, cramped with just the three beds in it, but it would have to do for now.

"Put your stuff underneath," Penn said as he down on the edge of the cot. I did as he said, laying my stuff neatly beside his, careful to leave my bow and knives somewhere I could reach them quickly if needed. Penn nodded his head to the spot on the cot against the wall, apparently deciding that it would be best if he acted as a barrier between me and the other two men.

I groaned to myself, looks like I wouldn't be getting to change out of my travelling clothes. I unzipped my jacket, hesitating for a second to pull it off completely. I could feel the other two watching me inconspicuously and it put me on edge. Knowing that I couldn't very well sleep in such a heavy jacket I shrugged it off and rested it gently on the edge of the railing on the cot.

"You know, you could sleep with me if you wanted to darling," one of the men jeered as he walked over towards me. Feeling him approaching I turned and grabbed his outstretched arm ducking underneath it easily and twisted it harshly behind him. I quickly kicked my boot into the back of his knee causing him to fall to the floor.

"Touch me and I'll kill you," I threatened quietly. Apparently the southern clan didn't hold the same sort of respect for women as the woods clan did despite that their leader was one. I let go of him quickly, knowing that if chose to fight me on it that I was going to be on the end of a losing battle. He easily towered over me and had me out weighed by a solid fifty pounds at least - I just needed to make a point, not start the war myself. I could hear Jaxon's voice echoing in my head, I couldn't afford to appear weak right now.

"Fine, fine," he conceded rubbing his shoulder as he stood back up and made his way back over to his own cot. I shot his friend a look trying to tell him that the same would go for him but he just smiled and put his hands up.

Penn had watched the entire interaction carefully, ready to interrupt at the first sign that there was going to be trouble. He smiled at me slightly as I set my knife down on the bed and undid my belt and leg holster. I kicked off my boots and climbed into the cot, pressing myself against the cold wall. I felt Penn lay behind me on his side, the cot was nowhere near big enough for both of us to rest comfortably, but at least we were both inside and safe for the night. He pulled a couple furs over us and laid back down.

His body felt strange against mine. He wasn't as tall as Jaxon and when his arm fell over my waist innocently everything just felt off. But I knew I could trust Penn so I pushed away my thoughts and let sleep wash over me.

* * *

><p>"Is there a woman in here?" a familiar voice asked from somewhere behind me. I was still half way asleep, not quite ready to get out from underneath the furs and face the day. My muscles were still sore from the ride yesterday and I wanted to rest as much as I could, while I could.<p>

"Yeah over there," a voice answered. "Sleeping with him."

I heard a low growl and instantly woke up. I would recognize Jaxon's raspy noise anywhere. I tried to sit up but Penn's arm was still draped around my waist - this wasn't going to be a good morning I concluded. In a second the blankets were ripped back and Jaxon stood at the foot of the cot glaring coldly.

"Penn get up," I groaned nudging him slightly with my elbow. He just muttered something in his sleep and pulled me tighter against him. I decided I was going to kill him for embarrassing me like this, that was if Jaxon didn't beat me to it.

"Penn," I whined as I dug two of my nails sharply into his hand. He jumped up quickly pushing me slightly into the wall. Yup, definitely dead.

"What was that for?" Penn asked yawning half way through.

"You wouldn't wake up," I told him sitting up now that he was off of me. "Ask Jaxon, I tried to wake you up nicely first."

"Jaxon?" Penn asked looking at me. It took a moment but he finally registered the man standing at the end of the cot who looked very unamused. "Shit. It wasn't what it looked like!"

"Shut up," Jaxon commanded, holding his hand out to help me out of the cot.

"Grab your jacket, we need to talk," Jaxon told me moving away from me once I was standing on my own. I did as he said wordlessly thinking that it would be easier to talk to him when we weren't surrounded by a group of people. Pulling on my boots I followed him out of the door, ignoring the hushed whispers from behind me - Penn could deal with that.

I followed him a ways out into the forest before he stopped. Double checking that no one was around I walked up behind him and wrapped my arms around him tightly. He stiffened for a second but relaxed just as quickly.

"There was no other bed open, so Penn offered to share. It was either that or sleep alone and I thought that would be too dangerous and…" I rambled.

"I understand," Jaxon said interrupting. He turned around to face me and pulled my arms back around him.

"You just seemed awfully upset," I said hesitantly letting my head fall against his chest.

"I said I understood, not that I liked it," he replied. I sighed, I guess those two weren't the same thing.

"That's not why I came to talk to you though," he added taking a step back from me to look me in the eyes. Guess we were back to business.

"Does the name Clark mean anything to you?" he asked.

I nodded. Clark was Dr. Griffin's daughter. We had become pseudo-friends when I mentored under her mother but we were never very close. She was locked up for years before I was, placed in solitary if I remembered right. I told Jaxon as much.

"Why? What does she have to do with anything?" I questioned.

"She's their leader," he replied startling me. Clark was always strong willed but never struck me as a leader type, she seemed to soft.

"Didn't see that coming," I answered without thinking. "I still think talking to them is our best bet. I used to know Clark and she might be more willing to listen to what we have to say if it's coming from someone she recognizes."

"The Tribune agrees," Jaxon said. "Anya has agreed to meet with this Clark and wants you to ride out before her to try and talk with her first."

"Alright," I agreed. "When are meeting with her?"

"Get changed and gather your stuff, you ride out in three hours."

* * *

><p><strong>Getting closer to the actual 100 now! This one was a little shorter than the others but it's really just serving as a lead up to bigger and better things =] <strong>

_**Please continue to review and such! **_


	21. It's a Mad World

**You guys seriously make my day, I hope you know that. Love getting notifications about my stories! **

**So this is the chapter some of you have been waiting for anxiously - the 100 are finally introduced in this chapter. From here on out I will be using the episodes as major plot points, but will not be following them verbatim. You'll recognize a scene in this chapter from the show that is a little different than the series, that is because it is mine and I can do what I want (evil laugh). I'll still be using the characters and following the general plot, but you'll be getting everything from Cole's perspective instead! **

**Hope you like it. Again, a reminder that anything in **_italics_** is grounder language - some of it is translated, some of it is not. I'm lazy when it comes to that, all translations will be at the end of the chapter though! **

**Without further delay:**

* * *

><p>I looked into the mirror Jaxon had found for me and sighed. This was more stressful than I thought it would be. I had taken out the braids in my hair and brushed through it, pulling the top half of it into a loose braid and left the rest hanging down. I had scrubbed the war paint from my face and washed the dirt from my body. I looked in the mirror and realized that I didn't recognize the person staring back at me.<p>

Have I changed that much? My hair was longer, skin tanned darker, and the scar across my face stood out prominently without the paint. Even my body was leaner, more toned from the mile treks and hours spent training. But the difference was deeper than that, I didn't just look different, I felt different.

It was the small things that gave it away. I stood a little straighter, I was more observant of my surroundings, and my eyes had lost their doe-like features and instead scanned the world around me in quick precision. I was not the same girl who had fallen from the sky, I had evolved into something stronger.

I pulled my navy trench jacket off the stool and shrugged it on. I had purposely chosen plain clothes for the trip - dark black jeans, and a black and white layered tank top that I had been wearing when I landed on Earth. I needed the others to trust me, and I doubted they would if I came in looking indistinguishable from the clan. I left my bow in the room along with my medical supplies, opting only for a knife tucked into my boots and the one I typically wore around my waist.

I glanced back at the mirror and tried to hide my grimace - I looked weak and ill-prepared, but it was the best I could do.

"Where are your weapons?" Indra asked as I stepped out into the open. I said nothing but nodded my head back to the room I had just appeared from.

"You plan to face them with no armor or sword?" Anya asked doubtfully. Despite the tribune supporting and vouching for me she was still hesitant about me being involved and she made it no secret.

"I'm planning on talking to them, not storming their camp," I replied evenly. "I need a few more supplies and I'll be ready to ride out."

I didn't wait for them to answer as I walked away. If this was happening, then it was going to be on my terms. I made my way through the village until I found the building marked with a red circle, the same symbol that had been painted on my forest green jacket I wore most often - it distinguished me as healer to the others.

I walked in quietly and was relieved to find Nyko inside, with all the preparations needed for the clans we hadn't spent much time together.

"Something wrong friend?" I asked noticing that he looked a little more bothered than the last time I had seen him.

"Oh, it's just you Cole," Nyko said almost sounding disappointed. I crooked an eyebrow at him and sent him a questioning look.

"Don't sound so upset about it," I joked wondering what was bothering the healer.

"I'm not, I am glad you stopped by before you left," he replied honestly. "I was just expecting a friend, he has been missing for a couple days now - but it is no matter. Are you ready for this?"

"Yes," I told him, not expressing my true hesitation. We were on the brink of war or peace and the next few days could decide the fate of the clan and the others, I wasn't sure that was something I was ever going to come to terms with.

"I have faith in you," he told me with a small smile. "I was hoping you would stop by so I could give this to you before you left, I know you enjoy it."

He walked over and handed me a small vial of a light purple liquid. I smiled up at him, thankful for his thoughtful gift. Lavender extract had become one of my favorite things to have on hand as of late. It had few medicinal purposes but the aroma was sweet and calming and even the smallest few drops could cleanse air heavy with sickness. Dripping only a single drop onto my finger I rubbed it into the base of my throat, it didn't take much and it would stay with me for the rest of the day.

"Thank you," I told him earnestly as I tucked the vial into an inside pocket of my jacket. He nodded in return.

"Stay safe," he commanded looking at me seriously.

"Don't worry, I'll be back to bother you in no time," I replied with a smile. He laughed and shook his head.

"I'll look forward to it," he said before pointing to the door. "Now go, Penn and Artigas were looking for you earlier. You better speak to them before you leave or they may never forgive you."

I nodded and turned to walk out of the healer's building. It felt as if I was saying goodbye to everyone and I didn't like it. I made my way to where I knew my horse was waiting, willing to bet that the two other warriors would be there as well. I wasn't disappointed when I saw them, along with Jaxon and few others standing nearby.

"You look weird," Artigas told me as I approached. I wasn't going to argue with him, I felt weird.

"Shut up," Penn snapped at him before looking back to me. "Kids these days, no respect."

I laughed and shook my head at Penn.

"Be careful please?" Artigas asked sincerely.

"I will," I promised. No matter what happened I was determined to make it back here - back home and back to my friends.

"And be quick about it alright? I know you get distracted easily but stay focused and get in and out," Penn teased lightly though his advice was serious.

I nodded. In and out, I could do that.

"Penn, Artigas, go get the horses ready the party is leaving soon," Jaxon commanded as he walked over. The two warriors nodded and left. I looked up at Jaxon sadly, it was decided earlier that he wouldn't be one of the warriors to escort me to the other's camp, despite his own protest.

"Be careful out there with them," Jaxon warned quietly as he moved toward me, stopping only when he was just mere inches away. I wanted to reach out and grab him, to feel his strength one more time before I left but we couldn't afford such luxuries in public - not when we were on the verge of war. People could speculate about us, but giving them tangible proof would usurp his authority and could cause other clans to question his and the tribune's leadership, and that was not something I was going to let happen.

"I will," I promised again.

"Warriors from Anya's tribe will be on the lookout for you, once you set up the meet and talk to this Clarke head due west until you run into one of them," Jaxon instructed. "Someone from our clan will be with them at all times, and while they have been warned not to harm you stay on guard until you find a familiar face, understand?"

I nodded, it seems nowhere was going to be safe from here on out.

"If you are not back in a days time, I will…"

"You will do nothing," I interrupted. "Give me as much time as I need, they may be resistant at first. I will need to convince them to trust me and it will take time. I will come back as quickly as I can though, that I swear."

Jaxon's jaw stiffened and I could tell he wasn't happy with not having a clear defined timeline, but he would have to deal with it. I knew he would storm into their camp by himself to find me if that's what it came down to, and I also knew how that would turn out. Despite how good of a warrior he was, 100 to 1 were not good odds.

"Promise you will wait for me and not do anything rash?" I asked him.

"I promise," he replied quietly.

"I'll miss you," I admitted, my voice dropping to a low whisper. He nodded in understanding.

"And I you, so don't make me suffer by wondering when you will return," he replied. "I will not sleep well until I know you are back here with me, where you are safe."

"Ready?" Indra called out from the group of horses, she and a handful of Anya's warriors would be my escort through the woods. Unlike our home in the north, these lands weren't safe - mountain men and reapers roamed the forest.

"I am," I replied, loud enough so she could hear me. I moved to step past Jaxon, but he placed his hand on my shoulder halting me. Turning to look down at me his eyes were clouded with emotion and all the things he couldn't and wouldn't ever say out loud. I smiled at him softly, placing my hand over his and squeezing gently.

"Yeah, me too," I whispered knowing he would understand. And with that I moved towards Indra and mounted the horse behind her. As we rode off I fought the urge to look back, now wasn't the time. I had to focus on what was ahead of me.

* * *

><p><strong>Meanwhile back at the 100 Camp<strong>

Clarke was sitting in front of the camera Raven had set up discussing plans for the Arc and their survival on the ground. She was irritated by the council members attitudes, it seemed that they were more concerned with their own descent to Earth rather than their survival - which she understood to a point, but they couldn't just sit down here and wait for someone to show up. They would need to gather food and find better shelter before winter set in.

"Clarke are you listening?" Marcus Kane asked from over the intercom. She snapped back to focus and nodded.

"Yeah sorry, what were you saying?" she asked, missing whatever he had just been talking about.

"I was asking if you had run into anyone else besides these grounders down there yet?" Kane repeated. The council members around him whispered but he ignored them as he waited for Clarke's response.

"Besides the grounders? No," she replied, wondering what he meant. "Were we supposed to?"

Kane hesitated and looked to Chancellor Jaha.

"After your ship landed on Earth successfully we sent another ship," Jaha explained with a sigh, there was no point in keeping it a secret now. "There were 20 other prisoners, adults sentenced to be floated who were at the top of their fields - we sent them there to help you, but we have no idea if they made it or not - their sensors went out as soon as they entered the atmosphere."

"What?!" one of the female councilmembers exclaimed. "We had no knowledge about this! Even a search through our records database isn't showing anything!"

"Project 404 was a highly confidential mission, only a handful of other people besides myself knew of it," Jaha answered. "You will find no records of it, no data logs or manifests - for all intents and purposes the project does not exist, those we sent down do not exist."

"So there are others from the Arc down here too?" Clarke questioned wanting to make sure she understood what they were talking about. Jaha nodded in response.

"And you have no information about where they landed? We should try to find them!" Clarke said, but Kane shook his head.

"No, if you have not found them yet it is better to assume that they are dead," he told her, his voice straining. "There were only 20 of them, nearly that many of your own group have died already."

Clarke sighed but said nothing. They could use the extra help around the camp, but definitely couldn't afford to go on a goose chase through the forest, not while the grounders were out there.

After a few more minutes, Clarke signed off and went to get the next guy in line to speak to his parents. On the way out she ran into Bellamy.

"How'd you chat go princess?" he asked.

"They're making plans to start sending dropships down to join us," she relayed, pausing for a moment. "I also found out that we weren't the only ones they sent down."

"Hm," Bellamay responded as he thought something over. "That means she's telling the truth."

"Who?" Clarke asked, confused by what he was saying.

"Someone came up to the camp while you were in your little meeting, said she's from the Arc even though she looks like a grounder," Bellamy told her. "We have her tied up in the bottom level of the drop ship, Raven wanted me to come and get you - we still need that antidote for Finn."

With a new resolution Clarke headed back to the ship. If this girl really was from the Arc then maybe there were others... maybe she would know how to save Finn.

* * *

><p>I grunted as the two teens set me down on the metal floor. As I expected they didn't believe me when I approached their gates and I was now sitting with my hands tied waiting for Clark to show up. I had gotten that much out before they duct taped my mouth shut. Despite the treatment I was actually fairly comfortable, though distrusting they were fairly gentle with me which told me only one thing - they wouldn't stand a chance if we went to war.<p>

I was on the lowest level of the ship and I tried to take in everything as I was waiting. One of them was injured, a boy I didn't recognize, though the knife laying beside his bed gave me a good enough hint of what happened.

My eyes snapped to the front of the ship as Bellamy Blake and Clarke returned. The older man wouldn't listen to me when I arrived despite me knowing his name - even if I didn't know him personally, he and his sister were infamous back on the Arc.

"This is her," Bellamy announced as if it wasn't obvious. Clarke paused as she studied me curiously, I wondered if she would recognize me. It would make everything so much easier.

"Has the other one talked yet?" Clarke asked. The girl nearest the injured boy was the first to respond.

"No, and Finn's getting worse," she said directing her angry stare at me.

The other one? What does she mean?

"We should move her upstairs as well, she's obviously one of them," Bellamy suggested.

"You don't know that," Clarke argued. "She could be one of the others from the Arc."

So they did know about us. I made a mental note of that and watched as everything continued to unfold in front of me.

"Others?" the girl from beside the table asked. Clarke nodded and ran through a conversation she had with the Chancellor only minutes ago. They had done better than us in that regard I thought, they had made contact with the Arc - we didn't even really try. It was easier to leave it all behind us than dwell on it.

Clarke came and kneeled down in front of me and peeled the tape off my mouth. I made a yawning motion and wriggled my jaw to get the stinging sensation to go away.

"Who are you?" she asked staring at me.

"I was kind of hoping you would recognize me Clarke," I told her honestly. She looked surprised but shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but I don't."

"My name is Colette," I told her and I watched as her eyes filled with recognition. "I worked with your mother back in the medical bay on the Arc."

"She could be lying Clarke," Bellamy warned, but I didn't move my eyes from the girl in front of me. It was imperative that she believed me.

"She's not," Clarke responded, her voice barely above a whisper. "I recognize you now. You look different than I remember you, but there's no doubt about it Cole."

I felt my lips twitch in a small smile, "yeah, a trip to Earth can really take its toll on you."

"Where have you been all this time?" Bellamy asked from the his spot still at the doorway of the ship. A few others had also gathered around curious about what was going on.

"I have a lot to talk to you about," I told them, looking back and forth between the two. There was obviously some sort of power struggle going on here.

"But would mind untying me first? Not the most comfortable thing ever," I said holding my bound hands up to her. She nodded even though Bellamy protested in the background.

"Let's go up a level," Clark suggested. "Bellamay, grab anyone who you think should know about this and meet us on the second level in five."

I climbed up the ship's ladder behind Clarke, happy to see that the second level was more of a living area. Sitting in one of the flight chairs I thanked Clarke as she handed me a canteen of water. A few minutes later I was surrounded by a handful of people, most of whom I barely recognized.

"This is Octavia, Jasper, Monty, Raven, and Bellamay," Clark said, introducing the half circle of teens that surrounded me. "Guys, this is Cole. She's part of the other group that was sent from the Arc."

"So there are more of us out there?" the one introduced as Jasper asked. I hesitated to answer. More people from the Arc, certainly. More of us that would join them? Not so much.

"I was apart of a group of 20 sent down to Earth after you guys, a handful of our group have died but there are still about 15 or so of us left," I told them, trying to remain as honest as I could for now.

"Did the grounders attack you too?" he asked, eyes narrowing. I furrowed my eyebrows.

"What are grounders?" I asked.

"The people that live here on Earth, the ones that survived the nuclear explosion," Clarke answered.

"They're savages," Bellamy spat.

Well so much for this being an easy mission I thought to myself.

"They attacked us at first, captured us actually," I told them. "Our ship landed in the middle of one of the villages further north - we killed a few of their people on impact, injured a few more."

"Good," the girl named Raven growled. She was the one who was sitting next to the injured boy downstairs. Convincing them to forgo fighting was looking like it was going to be harder and harder.

"We came to an understanding though, and they let us live in their village along side them," I continued trying not to let them anger me. "We only traveled down when we heard that others from the sky had fallen nearby."

"So you're one of the grounders now?" Bellamy accused.

"We live beside them, yes," I replied evenly. "Cohabitation is possible, that's why I am here."

"They sent you?" Clark asked confused. I nodded and looked around the room.

"Whatever you have started with the clan here is pushing you closer and closer to war," I explained. "They don't want that and trust me, neither do you. While they may seem primitive from the outside, believe me when I say that they have a well developed system and are ruthless warriors. Knowing I am from the Arc they asked if I would come talk to you, convince you to settle for peace."

"We can take them," Jasper spoke up. I met his eyes with a blank stare.

"You and what army?" I asked.

Turning back to look at Clarke I sent her a pleading look, "please at least consider it. More people don't have to die. Their commander wants to talk to you, discuss peace arrangements. If you want, I can set it up."

"No," Bellamy answered immediately with Raven quick to second him. "How do we know this isn't a trap? Why are they all of a sudden being peaceful now? The grounder upstairs isn't asking for peace, he's going to let Finn die."

"Clarke, he's getting worse," a girl from the ladder well called up breaking everyone's attention. "You should come down here now."

Clarke sighed and asked me to stay put as everyone but Octavia exited the level. If Bellamy thought his small sister was enough to keep me contained he was sorely mistaken.

"What did your brother mean about the other 'grounder' upstairs?" I asked her softly. She looked away and for a moment I thought she wasn't going to answer me.

"He saved me," she said, barely loud enough for me to hear her. "He saved my life and they have him strung up so they can get information from him."

The thought made me angry but I tried to maintain a cool front. I wondered why one of Anya's clan would have saved Octavia, they were less trusting by nature than the other tribes.

"Has he spoken at all?" I asked, curious what he might have said if anything.

"No," she said sadly.

"Would you mind taking me to him?" I asked cautiously. "Not all of them speak English, maybe if I talked to him he would understand and be more willing to help."

That wasn't my real intention, but I was hoping it was an excuse she would buy. If he was caught out in the forest then I had no doubt that he was a warrior, which would mean that he would have no problem understand them. But I didn't like the idea of one of our own being tied up and tortured, and I wanted to let him know he had a friend here - that I would help him escape. I wondered briefly if this was the man Nyko had said was missing.

"You can speak their language?" Octavia asked curiously. I held up my hands in a so-so gesture.

"I've picked up bits and pieces," I lied. "Enough to tell him who I am and that we aren't his enemies."

She seemed to think it over for a second before nodding, climbing up the ladder and motioning for me to follow.

"Octavia what are you doing up here?" a dark skinned boy asked coldly. "And who is she?"

"She's a friend," Octavia said. "Bell wants her to try and talk to him, he'll explain everything to you downstairs."

The man seemed hesitant but dropped down the ladder anyways. Octavia quickly closed the door and sealed it.

"They have a key, but it will buy you some time," she explained. I nodded and looked towards the man tied to two metal beams against the far wall.

"Do you understand me?" I asked, knowing already that he did. But I need to make this believable I reminded myself.

"_Ai laik Cole," _I told him, getting his attention easily. "_Ai laik heda kom Skaikru kom Trigedakru."_

"_Chit?"_ the man asked, his voice raspy.

"_Ai laik Cole,"_ I repeated. "_Chon yu bilak?"_

"My name is Lincoln," he replied, looking at Octavia as he answered.

"_Are you Nyko's friend who has been missing?" _I asked.

"_Sha."_ he replied after a moment, confirming my thoughts. "_Are you one of them? How do you know the healer?"_

"_No,"_ I answered quickly. I could hear Bellamy banging on the closed hatch now, yelling for his sister to open the door. I made eye contact with Lincoln again.

"_Non wan op," _I told him seriously. "_Ste yuj. I will not leave you here, when I leave you will too."_

Seconds later Bellamy burst through the hatch furiously. He was followed closely by the guard from earlier, Clarke, and Raven.

"What the hell Octavia?" Bellamay yelled at his sister.

"She thought she could talk to him, get him to cooperate," she explained meekly, glancing back and forth between me and Lincoln.

"So you can speak to him?" Bellamy asked doubtfully.

"Bits and pieces," I supplied, copying my lie to Octavia. "I tried telling him that I am from his clan, but I don't think he believes me, he didn't respond to me either."

I shot Octavia a look, pleading her to go along with it. Now that I was here they didn't need another reason to validate hurting Lincoln. I would be able to explain what they needed to know. The longer they didn't know he understood English, yet alone could speak it, the better it was for him. I just hoped that Octavia understood that.

"Well he needs to start talking, and fast," Raven said anxiously. "Finn's dying, we need the antidote now!"

"We can do this again and again until you talk," Bellamy threatened picking up to live wire cables from nearby. Knowing where this was heading I stepped in front of Lincoln surprising everyone in the room including the captive himself.

"There's no need for that Bellamy," I growled. "Did he have any supplies on him? He would most likely be carrying the antidote on him."

"Yeah he did," Clarke spoke up motioning over to a table with a leather bag on it. "But they're all just different plants, I can't tell what is what."

I looked through the different vials in his bag, instantly recognizing most of them. I picked up two that I knew were antidotes for common poisons but hesitated giving them to Clarke. Without knowing what he was poisoned by I could just as easily speed up the boy's death by giving him the wrong medicine.

"_What did you use?"_ I asked Lincoln. "_I'm here to negotiate peace between your clan and the sky people, but they'll never agree to it if you let one of them die."_

He didn't respond though, just kept staring straight ahead.

"What's on this!" Clarke yelled at him, holding up his knife.

"Which one is it Cole?" Clarke asked not getting an answer from Lincoln. "Ask him! Ask him which one it is!"

"_Beja_" I pleaded. The energy in the room was high, if this wasn't resolved quickly something bad was going to happen.

"Show us, please!" Octavia begged.

"This isn't working!" Bellamy said raising his voice over the others. "I can make him talk!"

"No!" Octavia yelled trying to reason with Clarke. Bellamy didn't listen though as he stripped Lincoln of his shirt. His tattoos reminded me of Jaxon, but as Bellamy started hitting him I pushed that thought from my mind.

"Stop!" Octavia yelled, but her brother paid her no mind, instead jabbed a sharp tool through his hand. Raven stepped up in his pace and picked up the live wires, the moment they touched Lincoln's skin he cried out.

I struggled to stay in my spot, not sure how to stop what was happening. I knew Lincoln would never tell them, not after this torture. He was too strong. His pride was too strong.

"Enough!" Octavia yelled picking up the discarded knife. "I know you won't let me die."

I watched as she dug the knife into her skin. Bellamy yelled at her as Lincoln pulled against his restraints. That's one way to do it, I thought to myself.

"Give them to me," Octavia asked holding her arm out to me. I passed her the two vials and stayed quiet as she got Lincoln to tell her which was the correct one. In an instant Clarke and Raven disappeared out of the room.

"Octavia," her brother said reaching out for her.

"Don't touch me," she yelled moving away from him. I walked over to the water basin in the corner, picking up a rag nearby on the way.

"I'll take care of her, you should go make sure the antidote is working," I told Bellamy. He glared at me but nodded when his sister moved even further away from him.

Bringing the wet rag over to Octavia I knelt down in front of her.

"That was brave of you," I told her, grabbing her arm and cleaning it before she could protest. "And slightly stupid."

"You had the antidote," she replied, not looking at me directly.

"No, I had two antidotes with no reason to believe either of them were the right one," I told her effortlessly. She didn't respond but let me continue to clean her cut.

"Why didn't you do anything to help? You're from his village right?" she asked, the accusation clear in her voice.

"I never fight unless the odds are in my favor," I answered.

"Is that something you learned from them?" Octavia questioned. I nodded slightly thinking back to Jaxon and Penn.

"They really are different from us aren't they?" she said, more to herself than to me but I answered her anyways.

"Yes."

"If we fight them we will lose won't we?" she asked, looking away from Lincoln and to me for the first time. I drew my hand back, satisfied that her wound would be clean enough for now.

"Yes," I told her honestly. I stood up and rung the rag out, making sure it was clean before I tossed it over to her. She looked down at it questioningly.

"He'll need his wounds clean to," I instructed.

"Why me? Aren't you the doctor?" she asked. I shrugged and made my way over to the ladder.

"It wasn't me he just saved, a little gratitude can go along way," I replied climbing down the ladder leaving the two alone. I stopped once I reached the bottom level, turning to face the sick boy who must have been Finn.

"How's he?" I asked not really concerned, with the antidote he would be fine.

"Better," Clarke said, a small smile on her face as she stared down at his sleeping form. Now that was interesting.

"We need to finish having our little talk," Bellamy spoke up, moving out of the shadows behind me. I rolled my eyes at his theatrics.

"Can't it wait Bellamy?" Clarke asked. "I'm sure she's tired, and we've all had a long day. We can talk about everything in the morning."

"What's to stop her from running off in the middle of the night?" Bellamy asked the blonde.

"Trust me, if that was my plan there wouldn't be anyway for you to stop me," I told him, squaring off with him as he approached me.

"You act more like one of the grounders than one of us," he said sneering at me.

"If I said it while holding a shock whip would that make you feel more comfortable?" I replied not backing down.

"Enough you two," Clarke said stepping between us. "Bellamy we'll all talk in the morning and that's it."

"This isn't over," Bellamy threatened as he walked out of the drop ship.

No, I thought to myself, this is just the beginning.

* * *

><p><em>Ai laik Cole - I am Cole<em>

_Ai laik heda kom Skaikru kom Trigedakru - I am the leader of the sky people from the tree clan_

_Chit - What_

_Chon yu bilak - who are you?_

_Sha - yes_

_Non wan op - Don't die_

_Ste yuj - stay strong_

_beja - please_

**Please continue to review! It makes me very happy and inspires me to write faster ;)**


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